Before the Darkness
by Xandoria DuUrden
Summary: Before Reaper and before Widowmaker, there were two Overwatch trainees who were slowly falling in love. 1st of Overwatch stories
1. Chapter 1

Amelie was '18', old enough to go into the training program for Overwatch. Of course, she wasn't actually 18: she just turned 16, but the application never asked for the truth, just a birthdate. She filled it in as she sat up on the catwalk over the unused computer room, legs swinging between the bars. She thought carefully over each entry.

Relationship status: None. Full name/nicknames: Amelie Lacroix, no nicknames. School attended: La Petite Ecole Bilingue. She didn't clarify how long she attended, which was only until she was 6. College, if applicable: she left it blank. Past experience: N/A. Sure, she had worked for the French Police department with her brother, but they would deny it until their faces turned blue. After all, they were minors. Politics sickened her. Any certificates or training: part-time ballerina, gymnastics certificate. She got first aid training by sneaking into a hospital and watching a class, but that wouldn't be supported by the evidence available, so she didn't include any of her combat training. Licenses: She got a driver's license in France, but it was fake and discovered in seconds, so N/A. Address for contact: Room 302, Colorado Watchpoint. Relatives: Gerald Lacroix, brother, but she didn't write that. Frowning, she called him.

"This is not a good time." Amelie heard grunting in the background and wanted to keep it short.

"What did you put me as on your application?

"My girlfriend."

"Quelle?"

"They don't hire people with our relationship, so I figured we could be dating instead. Your research said they didn't mind that as much." Amelie groaned, as did someone in the background of his phone.

"So I am married to you. It's a happy relationship, Oui?"

"What do you think?"

"I think non. Au Revoir, boyfriend."

"Goodbye, girlfriend." Amelie erased None in Relationship Status, and put Boyfriend, and put None in Relatives. She continued on with the application. Physical Disabilities or deformities. She winced, looking at her skin. She sighed, and wrote, Curits Pigmentum Preaminis Disorder. She continued onwards, ignoring the feelings of regret. Soon, she was finished without telling something she viewed as a lie. Jumping off the catwalk and landing on her feet, she went to the front desk, and coughed to get the lady's attention. Looking up, the woman's smile quickly changed to a look of surprise. Amelie frowned, but ignored the people giving her looks. She'd dealt with it all her life: it wasn't anything new.

"…Um…how may I-"

"I am applying for the training program of Overwatch."

"Oh. Why do you want to join Overwatch, my dear?" Amelie thought carefully, knowing this would go on record.

"I want to make a difference."

"Alright, then. I'll see if we can't get you in." The woman said, and Amelie turned, walking away. Her ears heard,

"She's purple! How is she purple?"

"She's so weird-looking…" Amelie continued walking with confidence. It didn't bother her: she didn't let it. In less than two days, she was approved at told to report to training. Amelie was consciously the first to arrive, sitting in the back so someone would have to purposely scan the room to see her. One by one the trainees entered: a nerdy, American boy with clear confidence, a football-obsessed Asian girl with self-esteem issues, a few normal looking kids from China and Russia who were clearly close friends and romantically interested in each other, and a Canadian Alpha male who everyone respected. Class was about to start, with the towering Reinhardt as the teacher, when a boy walked in with the confidence of a lion. He was at least 20, which was bizarre of itself since the rest were 18 years old. He wore all black: black jeans, black t-shirt, black combat boots, a black beanie, and even dark skin. He was American-no, he was from around the Mexican border. Amelie couldn't tell where exactly he grew up, but he definitely was from that area. *Why is he in this class? He should have graduated by now, unless he's really bad at what he does.* He immediately scanned the room and locked eyes with Amelie. She refused to look away, but after a few seconds, he did, smirking for a little bit. Reinhardt ignored the boy and started shouting his lessons. Amelie frowned at the boy and began listening to Reinhardt fully.

"-We are going to split into groups of two to see how well you fight! Amelie, Jack, you are together!" The Canadian smirked, and Amelie did nothing but evaluate him in silence as they waited for time to start. "Mitch, you are with Joey!" The American and Chinese kids looked at each other and got every close to each other, as if challenging the other. "Li, you spar with Gabriel! No dirty plays, understand?!" Gabriel rolled his eyes, shrugging.

"Si, si, abuelo." Reinhardt frowned.

"English, Gabriel!"

"Sure, sure, grandpa." Reinhardt nearly growled but contained it. Amelie was impressed at the sass. It wasn't surprising: he seemed like one to do so. Gabriel grinned mischievously, disregarding the teacher.

"Fight!" Amelie let the boy come closer, watching his movements. He was sure, possibly quite able.

"So, are you new around here, pretty purple?" Amelie's head tilted. He was extremely full of himself. Instead of fighting, he was flirting. "I can show you around later. Sorry for having to beat-" Amelie kicked him in the face, punched his shoulder in the joint, causing him to cry out in pain, and punched him in the throat, making him fall over. She pinned him down by his arms, right next to his face.

"You are of no interest to me." She said calmly, keeping him pinned but looking to the side to see Gabriel. He had his opponent on the mat, knocked out with a bleeding nose. Gabriel saw her glancing at him, and locked eyes once again. She scoffed, focusing on other people instead, having no interest in having a staring contest with a stranger.

"Very good! Switching partners! Amelie, you are with Mitch now! Gabriel, you-KNOCKED LI OUT!"

"Si. She'll wake up in a few minutes." Li groaned, rolling over and standing up.

"What happened? My head hurts…"

"Go see Doctor Ziegler immediately! Gabriel, you have thirty laps, now!"

"Whatever." Gabriel began running, and Amelie was surprised at his stamina. He didn't pause once throughout all thirty laps, during which time Amelie beat Joey, lost to Mitch, and lost with Li once he came back. At the end of the laps, Gabriel had lost his breath, but stretched, acting like he did that every day, which probably was true.

"Gabriel, you fight Amelie." Gabriel looked over Amelie, and she looked over him as Reinhardt called out who was fighting who. "Fight!" Amelie went for his neck, and he went for her arms. Grabbing one of her hands, he twisted, making her go along to stop it from breaking. He wasn't a nice fighter, but neither was she. She spun with the twist, kicking him in the chest full force. He gasped inwards, grabbing her leg before he fell, dragging her with him. She went for his temple with her other hand, and he head-butted her stomach, releasing her leg. She coughed, stumbling but recovering quick enough to stomp on his foot. He grunted but didn't let go of her arm. He slid between her legs, hoisting her up into the air on his shoulders. She wasn't expecting that move, but went with it, grabbing his neck and somersaulting off his back, landing on her feet with her hands behind her head. He turned around, grabbing her hands and twisting them to where her palms were facing upwards in the center of her back, kicking her knee downwards. She was forced down, and stopped struggling, knowing he won. He released her and offered a hand.

"You're good, lady." She did not respond and refused his hand, getting up on her own, just as she had for the others. Reinhardt shouted,

"That is it for practice! Gabriel, you stay here for disciplinary actions!" Gabriel's shoulder's slumped slightly, and Amelie left, sighing. Winning two out of six fights was actually very good for her. She didn't have strength. She didn't have power behind her strikes: just her agility and her reflexes. She went back to the computer room she had filled out her application in, nimbly climbing up and sitting down, sticking her legs through the bars so they dangled down. Her arms hurt from where he had twisted them, and her stomach was groaning in protest to the injury he had given. Her original assessment was wrong: he was good, very good. His attitude, the disrespectful manner he had, was what was keeping him from progressing. Only one thought puzzled her about the boy.

*Why would he allow his demeanor to dictate how far he progressed?* It didn't make sense. She had no concept of his reasoning, and it annoyed her more than anything. She could deduce things about another simply from their motions and speech, their manners and reactions. He wasn't hard to read, possibly the easiest one she'd met, but this Gabriel was intriguing. A door opening interrupted her thoughts. It was the Mexican-American. He looked up at her and half-smiled, making her frown.

"Hey, mujer." He grabbed the ledge and tried to pull himself up. She stood and stomped on his fingers, scowling. He shouted something Spanish and shook the pain out his hand. After the pain faded, he cracked his neck. "Let's try again." He set his hand down by her, and she slammed her fists against his fingers, scowling deeply.

"I'll take that as an invite." He continued to try, and she continued to deny him access to her catwalk. When the 7 o'clock chimed, he sighed. "See ya, mujer." Once he left, Amelie climbed down as well, going to meet her 'boyfriend' for dinner in the cafeteria.


	2. Chapter 2

Gabriel entered the cafeteria, grumbling. His muscles ached from that purple lady's kicks to pressure points and weak spots. *Her file didn't say anything about combat training.* Jack and Angela waved him over, and he smirked, sitting down next to his friends.

"How'd training go?" Jack asked. Gabriel waved off the question.

"Same old Reinhardt."

"Oh, really? Is that why a trainee came into my office with a busted nose?" Angela said, Swiss accent cutting through his headache. He groaned, rubbing his temple.

"I forgot…"

"How exactly do you forget about giving someone a concussion and broken nose?" Angela cried out, shocked.

"You okay?" Jack asked, noticing his friend rubbing his head a lot. Gabriel sighed.

"A trainee was not like her file said."

"What? They check all information out."

"I know. Maybe Jack's paranoia is getting to my head."

"It's not paranoia if you're just suspicious of everyone."

"No, it's paranoia when you're openly suspicious of everyone."

"Gabe, that's not true, and you know it." Gabriel chuckled at Angela defending Jack.

"Yeah, yeah. How's Reinhardt handling you taking over, Boy scout?" Jack sighed.

"He's saying I need more training, and I have to agree with him. I don't know the first thing about running an organization. Speaking of which, I talked to Ana about your suggestion. She said if you manage to graduate before next year, she'll talk to you about it." Gabriel shrugged. Unknown to Jack, Ana had already approved his suggestion. all he had left to do was find applicants, his absolute least favorite thing to do.

"Well, it's not happening. Grampa is mad at me. Again."

"You did hurt someone during training."

"It's not a big deal. Better it happens here than in the field."

"Gabbi, it doesn't work like that." Gabriel groaned.

"I hate that nickname, Jack."

"And I hate Boy scout. We're even. You really need to take it easier on the trainees. I know you're older, but they should get a chance, too." Gabriel looked at Jack in annoyance.

"It's not that. We need people who can take hits and keep fighting, like the trainee who gave me this." Gabe revealed a bruise on his sternum, and Angela gasped.

"How?! No one's file showed any kind of ability like that!"

"It's a French lady. She has Curits Pigmentum Preminis Disorder, or something like that."

"I've never heard of that." Gabriel frowned.

"Really? It sounds medical."

"It is, but I don't know what it means." Gabriel heard the cafeteria doors open, and saw the woman entering with a pale skinned, brown eyed man attached to her by the arm.

"There she is." Angela looked and nodded.

"Ah. It's a skin disorder. She has too much pigment in her skin, making it appear purplish-blue." Gabriel nodded, taking in the other person with her. "Hey, that's Gerald Lacroix. He's in charge of Talon's investigations." *Lacroix? That's the lady's last name. Hmm…* "Ah, she must be his mysterious girlfriend he talks to over the phone."

"Girlfriend? Huh." Jack noticed Gabriel's tone, but misunderstood what it meant, getting a big smile.

"You like her, don't you? She beat you, right?" Gabe scoffed. *The lady almost broke my fingers just for trying to sit next to her. No, I'm not interested.*

"She didn't, and no. She's interesting, that's all." *Curious to know why she didn't tell the truth on her file. Or she did, and I just missed it. I'll have to double check.* Gabriel picked at his food, not really hungry. Angela noticed.

"Gabriel, you need to eat. Training takes a lot of energy."

"Not hungry. What's our policy on siblings working together?"

"We don't allow it." Jack said bluntly. "If one gets in danger, the other could jeopardize the mission to save their family, especially if they're all they've got." *That explains that.* "Why do you ask? You've got one we don't know about?" Gabe chuckled.

"Dunno, but Madre might want in." Jack rubbed his head.

"Isn't it bad enough she keeps sending-what are they called?"

"Conchas."

"Right, conchas-to you every Sunday. I don't want to know what she'd do if she was here."

"Kick everyone's a** in everything."

"Isn't she like 60?"

"53, but that won't stop her."

"I've never met her, but if she's anything like you…" Gabriel smirked.

"Better. I've got to fill in some paperwork." He stood up, but Angela pulled him back down.

"Not until you eat."

"I've already got a mom, Angela. I don't need a second one."

"Fine, but you won't forget movie night again, right?"

"It was one week." Gabe muttered, pulling his beanie down farther. He purposely walked past Amelie's table. They both were speaking in French, making him wish he knew the language. Glancing at her, he saw her lock eye with him, and quickly looking away, cursing mentally. *She noticed. Man!* He retreated to his room for a few minutes, but quickly got bored doing pull ups on his door frame. He walked to the file room, a glorified closet filled with personnel files. He went to Amelie's file for the second time, curious. Nothing was different, but something about her being the girlfriend of Gerald seemed off. He frowned, leaning back in an office chair.

*Do I tell Ana about this, or do I talk directly to Lacroix? I feel I should tell Ana, but if I do, there'll be an investigation, and I ruin 2 lives over possibly nothing. Hmm.* He went to the G's, grabbing Gerald's file. Nothing amiss was inside. He had joined at age 18, accompanied by his girlfriend, Amelie, nothing to suggest suspicion. It was completely spotless, and that made Gabriel nervous. *I'll talk to Ana, but I'll ask she keeps it quiet. If they are or aren't lying, I don't want to ruin their chances.*


	3. Chapter 3

"Amelie Lacroix. 18, correct?" Amelie nodded, keeping eye contact but tapping her finger against her thigh, wanting to appear slightly nervous but not as much as she actually was. Ana was sitting across from her, with the file. "No combat training."

"Non, madam." Ana frowned.

"Then perhaps you can explain how you managed to keep one of our best trainees a run for his money."

"I don't know. Luck was on my side." Ana nodded, clearly not buying that. *That was a very weak lie: this woman is a professional. You need to be at the top of your game.*

"If that is the case, I'll cut to the true problem: your relationship with Gerald Lacroix. It's quite a large coincidence that you both have the last name." Amelie's hand tapping increased slightly, but the rest of her body was completely relaxed.

"Oui, it is." Ana slammed her palm against the table, getting right into Amelie's face.

"Stop lying! What is your actual relationship with Gerald?" Amelie's face was stony.

"What reason would I have to lie on a private form only Overwatch leaders are allowed to read?" Ana backed off.

"If you reveal the truth now, we will discontinue your training without any official statement. Gerald's position will not be changed and he will not be affected." Amelie was still tapping but wasn't worried at all. If they could prove anything, they wouldn't be questioning her.

"I am telling the truth." Ana sighed.

"I am trying to help you. I cannot do that until you tell me the complete truth, and you will not leave this room until you do." Amelie sighed.

"I cannot tell you anything more than what I am already saying. There's nothing more for me to add."

Gabriel was in another room with Gerald the day after Amelie was initially questioned, pacing the room across from the clearly nervous officer.

"If you tell me what her real relation to you is, at most she'll be disbanded from training with no official statement. If you continue hiding things, we will investigate both of you publicly, destroying-"

"Wait! Just…don't make her leave. If you're going to make one of us leave, let it be me." Gabriel sat down, hands clasped. *Finally, we're getting answers.* Gabe raised his hand, causing the tape in the observation room to pause.

"Spill it."

"We are not boyfriend-girlfriend. Far from it. We're-"

Amelie sighed. Ana wasn't joking about staying in the room until she gave them something. When Ana came in, Amelie said, conviction in her voice,

"You win, Madam. We are not just boyfriend-girlfriend. We lied because of our ages. We're married." Ana paused, then laughed. She sat down, holding a file.

"That was very convincing, Amelie, but your 'husband' already told us everything. Unfortunately, because of your lies, we cannot trust you enough to continue training." Ana handed Amelie the file. She was expecting it to be resignation forms, but instead, it was a letter. "Read that, and then sign it. It's a resignation form, detailing…" Amelie stopped listening to the obvious lies and started reading it.

"Amelie, your brother told us the truth. After watching our interview again, I'd like to personally train you to become an undercover operative. However, because of the extreme possibility of spies listening, I am forcing you to 'resign'. Our training with take place while your brother is away on mission, which will be quite often. I want you to get a side job as anything you want that takes a lot of time. We don't want any of our enemies to catch wind of you in particular. I have a feeling you'll be a wonderful spy. Meet me in the courtyard after lights out. Gabriel will let you inside." Amelie looked up at Ana in surprise, quickly masking it to be horror. *I can't believe this! I'm not getting fired, and neither is Gerald? Thank goodness.*

"Do you understand, Mrs. Lacroix?"

"No! We're just married! Why can't I work with my husband?"

"I just explained that. Because of your lies, we cannot risk you working with us."

"Then why can Gerald stay?"

"Because he has proven himself to not be any kind of traitor quite often. Now sign the paper, and no further action will be taken against you." Amelie sighed, wiping her eye to make it seem like she was crying. She took a pen Ana was holding out and signed her name at the bottom where a signature usually was put.

"Alright. Just don't treat him any worse for marrying someone like me…" Amelie stood and left the room, keeping her face stony until she arrived at a gambling place. A bouncer stopped her.

"You've got to be 18 or older, kid."

"What, just because I'm not very tall means I'm not 18?" She spat, going toe to toe with the bouncer.

"Let me see some ID, then we'll see."

"She's 18. Let her in." Amelie heard someone call from a table. He stepped aside and Amelie came in. She recognized the person who spoke and scowled. It was none other than the Mexican American. "Hola, mujer." She ignored him and walked to the bar.

"Whiskey, s'il vies plait."

"Got it." The bottle got there quickly, and she felt Gabriel staring at her.

"Merci." She sighed, taking a sip as Gabriel said,

"Blackjack. Gracias-"

"CHEATER!" Gabriel sounded more annoyed than worried at the shout.

"Again, I wear t-shirts: My pants don't have pockets. I can't cheat."

"YOU DID, AND I'LL PROVE IT!"

"I'll collect later. Adios." He simply walked out, making Amelie frown. She carefully turned just enough to make out the people he was playing with. One seemed more frustrated the someone should be over a game. Curious about where the Mexican was going, she paid for the drink and walked out. She saw him climb into a car. *Man. I can't follow someone when they enter a car…* He turned to make eye contact, but she just kept walking back to the base. *So annoying. Why does he keep trying to spend time with me? Have I not made my noninterest clear? Ugh.*


	4. Chapter 4

Gabriel sighed, pushing the papers aside and stretching. *More useless legal tape. Why is it harder for someone to do good than bad? And people wonder why the country is in the state it is.* He stood and entered the file room. His hand automatically when to the 'A's, and he found Amelie's file on reflex. He opened it again and frowned. It had changed and was now almost completely blocked out. *Amelie redacted. Relationship status, married to redacted. Everything else is gone. Well, now I know what's happening with her. Who's she 'married' to? Oh, it's probably Gerald. I should talk to him not in an interrogation room. I want to learn more about this French family, but first, I need to drop off my paycheck, and call Madre. It's her 54th birthday, right?* He glanced at the calendar and groaned. *F***, that was yesterday…she's going to officially kill me now.* He quickly left and entered a car, yawning. He saw Amelie walking inside the building and paused. *Why is she so interesting to me? I've met other people like her-no, that's not right. I've met other spies: usually on the other side. She's something else. Now all I've got to do is get her to talk to me.* Amelie turned at locked eyes with Gabe, and he smiled, waving. She scoffed and entered, but Gabe saw a slightly darker purple tint spread on her cheeks. *Why is she blushing? That's confusing. Right, Madre, paycheck.* He started the car and slammed on the gas, wanting to go fast. As he tore out of the parking lot, he continued thinking. *Maybe I just imagined her blushing. She doesn't seem like that kind of girl, not that I mind. Everyone who tries to 'woo' me is like that, and it is so annoying. Why do people even like me? I'm a total d***. What's this?* He slowed down as he passed a scratched up sign. It used to say 'Welcome to Deadlock Gorge', but now it read 'Deadlock Gorge: Go Away'. He was tempted to stop, never having been big on orders, but thinking of his mother and the bank made him ignore the urge. When he got to the bank, it was a lot less crowded the usual, but just as worn-down: just the way he liked it. He did his business quickly, then stepped outside to call his mother, wincing in apprehension.

"Hola, Madre?"

"QUE NO TE LLAME (Why haven't you called)?!" He held the phone away from his ear to protect his hearing, and slowly put it back to wild Spanish cusses and shouts.

"Lo Seinto, Madre (Sorry, mom.) …" He heard a deep breath on the other end.

"No te preocupes (No worries), if you tell me what the f*** you have been doing!"

"Well, I've been going through paperwork, trying to figure out who to hire."

"For the section you're working on that you won't tell me about for some reason, probably because it's illegal?"

"Si. It's slow, boring, and exhausting." Gabriel said, rubbing his head.

"And? What else?"

"More training."

"Because you were held back due to your disrespectful manner."

"Si. I met someone interesting."

"Oh? Who is she?"

"How do you know it's a she?" Gabe joked.

"Because you don't think any guy is interesting except Jack."

"True. She's French."

"Oh? At least she's not a Brit."

"Madre, plenty of Brits are nice." Gabe corrected softly, not wanting to upset his mother.

"Hey, you don't respect men, I don't respect Brits."

"Fair enough. Her file's redacted."

"Natural spy, then."

"Si. She's purple."

"Que? Oh, you mean she's green, new, si?"

"Nope. Literally purple." Gabriel heard guns firing, and asked, "Madre, where are you?"

"The firing range. It was your birthday present."

"Oh…"

"So actually purple. I've heard of black, red, even white, but never purple. Is that some kind of sexual prefer-" Gabe shouted,

"MADRE! No! Her skin is purple. That's it. She might be. She's French…"

"Now who's the racist?"

"It's an observation, not a judgement. How was your birthday?" Gabriel said, trying to change the subject.

"It was fine, though I missed you. Margret is here. Oh, look. Says she can beat me in target practice any day and she misses 4 out 6 shots. She's so good."

"She's 70."

"She's senile. I swear, ever since she was promoted to Captain and I was still a private, she's been unbearable."

"It happened 27 years ago."

"Yet she brings it up every time we meet. Anyways, I'm about to beat her a**." Gabriel saw an all too familiar car pull up and groaned. *That man keeps coming to pick a fight.*

"D*** it."

"Watch your language. f*** and s*** is fine, but we do not use that word."

"Si, Madre. I've got to go. Someone's about to pick a fight."

"Try not to bust your nose again."

"I haven't done that since I was 12. Adios."

"Adios, mi hijo. Llameme (Bye, son. Call me)."

"Si, si." Gabriel hung up and faced the sore loser from blackjack a few weeks ago. "What?"

"Ya'll're gonna pay for ya'll cheatin'."

"You aren't from Texas, idiota." The fake drawl disappeared.

"I've gotta new gang, so you better stop cheating, or your head will end up on my wall."

"That's terrifying." Gabriel walked away. As much as he wanted to flatten the guy, he was still a member of Overwatch, and every action he did in public would affect the organization, so he resisted, going back to the base. He walked to the catwalk, figuring Amelie would be there. She was, and he smiled at her. "Hola, mujer." She scoffed, rolling her eyes at him. He began the process of trying to climb up again, being denied every time. He'd done this every day for the past 2, almost 3 weeks, ever since he first saw Amelie. If he remembered correctly, it was the 29th day of trying. She was stubborn, but so was he. When he reached up again, she didn't react, scowling. "You're almost as stubborn as me." She didn't respond, looking at her finger nails. *You are as stubborn as me.* "You're letting me sit next to you, but not talk to you?" Not a single word, and when he moved closer, he felt a finger pressing against his kidney. He scooted a little farther away until he was 2 feet from the icy woman. "You're letting me sit on the ledge. Glad that's clear. Your file was removed. I'm guessing you got 'fired'?" Amelie looked at him in confusion for the emphasis. "I bet your husband is happy about keeping his job." She made a mental connection and looked away, the look of hate replaced with interest. "Well, I've got to go. Adios." Gabriel climbed down, looking up again with a grin. "See you tomorrow, mujer." As he left, he thought to himself, *I will get that woman to speak to me.*


	5. Chapter 5

Amelie took a deep breath before she entered the courtyard for her first 'unofficial' training. Ana wasn't there, and Amelie frowned, looking around. She saw a glint of light from the roof, and ducked under the only tree, trying to get a better look while taking cover. It was definitely a sniper, but because of the darkness and cover, she couldn't make out what the person looked like. The reflective scope disappeared, but Amelie stayed undercover, not wanting to be shot by a surprise attack. A tap on Amelie's shoulder surprised her, and she nearly punched Ana in the face. Ana frowned. "You startled me."

"Slow in catching the sniper. You would have been shot on sight. And terrible at observing threats."

"I know."

"Shoot that target. Here's a gun." Amelie complied, aiming carefully and firing. She hit the edges of the target and growled in annoyance. "Again." The firing continued until the gun ran out of bullets. She didn't make any bull's eyes, but never missed entirely. Ana stated, arms crossed. "Don't pull. Squeeze. Don't worry about hitting the target: worry about hitting where you're aiming. One inch can mean life or death, mean an entire mission. Hit the center." Amelie took a calming breath, inhaling as she aimed, then firing as she exhaled. It hit dead center, taking Amelie by surprise. "The top edge." She fired again, hitting again. "Bottom." Another hit. "See you tomorrow." Ana walked away, but Amelie stayed standing, confused. She imagined a target in the tree, firing. She hit it right on. She let a small smile grace her face. *It looks like I've found something else I'm good at.* A clap met her ears. She found the Mexican American watching her and scowled.

"Nice shot." Amelie spat, more annoyed at his constant banter and sarcastic remarks than angry at the comment,

"Can you do better?"

"No." Amelie paused.

"Quelle?"

"Can't hit with a bullet to save a life. Hand to hand is my shtick." Amelie didn't know how to move forward on the conversation, unused to anyone being so blunt. "You're talking to me now?"

"42 days of you annoying me. Why are you so intent on getting me to talk with you?"

"You're different." Amelie scowled again. "A smile looks better."

"What is there to smile about? You are as annoying as…I don't know a good comparison."

"Black mold?" Gabriel offered, leaning against the tree.

"That would be a compliment." Amelie muttered, aiming at the target and firing repeatedly. She paused after a while, noticing he was still present. "Are you really bad at aiming?"

"Ever see a lion aim a gun?" Amelie almost snickered, but her face hardened again, his previous comment echoing in her mind.

"So you are annoying me because I am purple."

"No." Gabriel sat down with his back against the tree.

"Is it not true?" Gabriel shook his head.

"Your skin could be neon pink: I don't care. It's dumb to judge based on that." Amelie frowned, lowering her gun and facing the strange man. *He doesn't care?*

"Quelle?"

"Some disorder made you purple. So what?"

"It's technically blue."

"Now who's judging." Amelie slugged Gabriel in the shoulder, and he laughed. Silence fell for a long time, and Amelie inspected the gun, only having held one for a few brief moments before now. Gabriel asked, "You know how to take a gun apart?"

"Non, but it can't be that difficult." Gabriel yawned, standing up.

"I've got stuff to do tonight. Adios, mujer."

"Aude Revoir." Gabriel chuckled as he left, and Amelie frowned, processing every small piece of information she could about the odd man. *He didn't lie and doesn't care about my skin. He confuses me.* Amelie tried to take apart the gun, but couldn't even get a single piece off. Frustrated, she set it in the open gun locker, walking home. She passed a semi-open door and peered in. There was the blond man Gabriel kept sitting by, next to the blonde woman whose hands were clasped together tightly in a neat ball.

"What is taking Gabbi so long?" Amelie frowned. *Gabbi? Who is Gabbi?*

"Gabriel did say he would be late."

"Some of the things he's talking about aren't sitting well with me, Angela."

"Like what?"

"Hiring criminals, underaged individuals, going under the law. We're supposed to be above all that."

"You know he just says that just to annoy you."

"No, he doesn't. He doesn't say anything just to annoy someone."

"Not even when he calls the IT guys 'monkeys' and you 'boyscout'?"

"Okay, yeah. You have a-" Gabriel came in from a second door across the room, sitting down on the other side of Angela. "Gabbi, what took so long?"

"I was busy. What are we watching?"

"It is your turn to pick."

"Oh, yeah. Let me see." Gabriel looked through a book shelf, and put a movie in. Angela asked something in German, and Gabriel responded calmly, "You'll see. Also, you're speaking German."

"Ach! Sorry! I can't help it sometimes. English is hard."

"Yeah, I'll give that to you. I heard you had a mission in Japan later this month."

"Tomorrow, actually. I'm heading there for a relief effort."

"You really should take a break, Angela. 15, commander of the medical section, licensed, and major volunteer. You're going to get burnt out." Angela chuckled.

"Nein, I won't. I live to help. It's no different from you and Gabe liking to work together." Both of the guys looked away from each other, and Jack's response had a lot of hidden emotion.

"Yeah…"

"Anyways, what movie did you pick?"

"Lilo and Stitch."

"Why do you only have Disney movies, Gabriel?" Amelie frowned.

"I don't only have Disney."

"The Seasons of NCIS do not count."

"Then…I like Disney."

"Gabbi!" Amelie decided to go to her new home and practice her ballet. After all, she had a recital in a week, and hadn't gotten to the level of practice she needed. *I'm noticing some tension between Commander Jack and Gabriel. Interesting that they aren't making it obvious, but that can only be hid for so long.*

Out of story: Thank you for the criticism and the help, annie!


	6. Chapter 6

Gabriel rushed off to class, frowning. *Can't believe I'm going through with this…* Reinhardt was already there, stretching. He didn't notice it was Gabriel, and said,

"Richie, practice doesn't start for 10 minutes!"

"Not Richie." Reinhardt nearly fell over in shock.

"Gabriel?! You're here-early?!"

"Si." Reinhardt was unsure what to do.

"On your own?!"

"Yeah."

"…Is there a reason?!"

"6 years of training." Gabriel sarcastically responded. Reinhardt frowned.

"That you're early!"

"Got a job; can't do it without finishing this stupid thing."

"Well…since you've spent so long here, I guess if you can keep on time for 6 months, you can go to second in command, since you've already been approved for that!" Gabriel nodded. Practice was more boring than normal, but Gabriel managed to only get shouted at once. When it was over, he entered Ana's office, yawning.

"Not sleeping well?"

"You're not mi madre. How's Amelie?"

"Better than I expected. She already mastered most of the basics and will be mission-ready in no time."

"Bien."

"I heard you and Jack got in a fight again."

"Si." Gabriel said, not liking where this was going.

"You really should talk it out. You're getting worse and worse."

"It's personality conflicts."

"You gave him a broken jaw, and don't act like I can't see that arm." Gabriel pulled down his left sleeve, covering a large bruise.

"I've had worse. I came to see if you had any new possibilities or missions."

"Actually, yes. There's a gang that's getting worse called the Deadlocks."

"Si, I know them."

"Really?"

"Had a route that went right through mi home town. Never figured out what they carted."

"Weapons." Gabe raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "Left over from the war, raiding government buildings, stealing from other gangs, selling back to them." Gabriel nodded. *When we shut them down, it'll cut off a lot of the weapon influx, then.* "It's an unofficial investigation, your favorite; but Jack does know about it happening." *Wonderous.* "What do you think?"

"I'll check it out. What's the plan for Amelie, though?"

"I'm not sure. You know Gerald is in charge of espionage actions."

"He's in charge of the stick-up-their-a** club, too." Ana sighed.

"They aren't that bad." *Yeah, they are.*

"Adios."

"Bye." Gabriel walked out towards the cafeteria but was stopped by Gerald. He looked up in annoyance.

"Si?"

"I want to talk to you." He seemed extremely aggressive for someone who wanted to talk, but Gabe shrugged, entering a side room and promptly being shoved against the wall. *7 ways to take him out.* "Stay away from Amelie, le clochard (tramp)."

"No idea what that means, but no."

"You are going to stay away from my wife, or else." Gabriel growled.

"Make me, jacka**." Gerald swung, but Gabriel easily dodged, sliding to the left and pinning Gerald's arms behind him. He said, "I'm a d***, not a perv. Stay behind your desk." Gabriel let go and walked off, grumbling. He sat as far away from Jack as he could while being at the same table at lunch, and the absence of Angela was tangible. They ate in silence and left, glaring at each other. He headed to the courtyard, and was surprised to find Amelie there, looking at the tree. "Hola, mujer."

"Bonjour. Gerald is going on a mission tomorrow, so I thought I could spend some time with him, but he said he had to talk to someone. You have a bruise." Gabe chuckled, pulling down his sleeve again.

"He thinks I flirt with you."

"Do you?" Gabe smirked at her questioning look that had a hint of a Cheshire grin hidden inside.

"Wouldn't matter: you're taken." He joked back. She smiled.

"I suppose not. He attacked, didn't he?"

"Yeah."

"Maybe you deserved it."

"True. You have a concert?"

"They are called recitals." Gabe shrugged.

"So?" Amelie rolled her eyes.

"Non. Not for a while." Gabe yawned, stretching. He sat underneath the tree again and was quickly joined by her. He grinned at her, and she scoffed. "I was tired of standing around. Also, I'm curious as to who would win: my husband or my friend." Gabe laughed.

"Shady." Amelie sighed, rolling her eyes. "Got to go. Adios."

"Au Revoir." Gabe stood up and walked off to his room, yawning again. *Stupid Jack and his late-night fights. Let's see.* He pulled up more files, scanning through them quickly. *Jack, Jack, Angela, Ana, Ana, Reinhardt, computer monkey…maybe the monkey, maybe Angela. What's this-* A phone call interrupted Gabe's thoughts, making him growl. Answering it, he said,

"Gabe."

"Gabriel!" Angela sounded worried, and Gabe sat up. "There was a fire, and a man here needs immediate medical evacuation!"

"Why call me, then?"

"We're on route to the Colorado Base now, that's why!" Gabe groaned.

"Bien. Getting a slab set up." He stayed on the line listening to Angela's German cursing and moans of pain as he ordered a medical table to be set up. "What's it look like?"

"Severe burns, and two missing limbs."

"So he's dead."

"I have to try. I can't understand anything he says, though."

"He's speaking Japanese."

"I know that, Gabriel! I meant it's sounds garbled, and his hands are locked around his throat."

"Throat wound, then."

"I hope not. Those are very difficult to survive. Herr, Herr, sich beruhigen (Sir, sir, calm down)!"

"That'll work." Screaming echoed in Gabe's ears, and he moved the phone a few feet away, wincing. "Vocal cords work fine."

"Nein. They're burned. What did I get into?"

"Dunno." The sharp reply made Gabe chuckle to himself. "Slab's ready."

"They are called operation tables, Gabriel! Tell Jack." Gabe walked to Jack's room and knocked loudly, well aware it was nearly 2 in the morning. When no response came, he knocked louder.

"Ugh, Gabbi, I swear if that's you…" Jack opened the door with red eyes.

"Zeigler's flying in a guy."

"Why?" Jack yawned, stretching.

"Med Evac."

"There's hospitals in Japan. Tell her-" Gabe stated, secretly enjoying correcting Jack,

"Not for burn wounds, two missing limbs, and a throat burn."

"Oh. Set a table up-"

"Done."

"Then why'd you come to me?! I was in the middle of-"

"Jack, are you going to come back?" A woman asked, yawning. Jack blushed, and Gabe grinned.

"You do have a rule-breaker in you."

"Gabe-"

"You have a girlfriend now?"

"Gabe, stop." Gabe ran off, getting to Reinhardt's room where the old man was watching the news sleepily.

"Boyscout's got a girlfriend." Reinhardt didn't even hear him properly, looking at him strangely as Jack shouted,

"GABE, I SWEAR TO-"

"Tell Ana." Gabe ran off, letting the words sink into Reinhardt's head. He ended up in the courtyard where Amelie was training with Ana as Jack continued running after the Mexican. "Boyscout's got a girlfriend." Ana grabbed both him and Jack by the ears, face of disapproval clear.

"Gabriel Reyes and Jack Morrison. It is 2 in the morning and you nearly interrupted a very important ladies' conversation. Now, go to bed; somewhere where you won't wake everyone up; or work it out quietly." Both men nodded and entered the gym.

"I don't have a girlfriend, Gabe. She's my fiancée." Gabe shrugged.

"Whatever." Gabe's phone rang, and he answered it.

"Gabe."

"…The man is dead."

"Oh. You going back?"

"Nein, not now. I was almost there, anyways." Angela sounded hurt, but quickly regained her cheerfulness. "How did everything work out while I was gone?"

"A monkey showed up."

"What kind of technician?"

"No. A real monkey. From the moon colony."

"Really?"

"Yeah." Jack grabbed the phone, making Gabe growl.

"His name is Winston, and he's a scientist. He's friends with our pilot, the one at the top of her field, Ms. Oxford?"

"Night." Gabe went to his room, yawning. *I need to stop with the late nights.*


	7. Chapter 7

Amelie smiled, smelling flowers from an appreciative fan. Gerald came in, stretching. "Bonjour, Amelie."

"Bonjour. Did you make up with Gabriel?"

"I apologized for pinning him."

"And?"

"…And for assuming he was flirting with you."

"I told you, we are just friends." She stated, stretching. "Let's go home." As they walked, they chatted calmly.

"You did very well in your performance." Amelie knew he was talking about her Overwatch career: he never congratulated her on a ballet performance.

"Merci. I worked very hard. Madam Ana-Marie said I'll be ready for Sugar Plum Fairy in no time." She meant Ana said she'd be mission ready soon.

"Good. I was thinking, Mon espoir (My hope)."

"What a surprise." Amelie teased, leaning against him. *I am very glad we established rules for public displays. It would be weird to kiss my brother.*

"Ha-ha. What do you think of moving back to France?"

"Quelle?" Amelie asked, frowning. *I don't think this is mission based.*

"The Watchpoint is looking for a leader, and I was selected." Amelie looked into Gerald's eyes with a frown. He looked back equally. *So it is mission based. He has an idea for a mission. Time to gather information.*

"If you are still worried about Gabriel flirting with me-"

"No, no. Ana and Commander Morrison both agreed it was for the best."

"But we have a living here." Gerald nodded, looking away. *Okay, he's giving key information.*

"This is a big secret, but there have been 2 attempts on my life by the organization I'm investigating."

"Quelle? Why haven't you told me?!"

"I didn't want to worry you." Amelie frowned, folding her arms. She was freaking out: it wasn't acting at this point.

"If there have been threats on your life, of course! We're moving to France right away, and you're going to drop the investigations. Right?"

"Well…"

"Right?" Amelie asked forcibly. She was fully aware the investigation was not going to stop.

"Non. The commanders are depending on me, Amelie."

"Non. You are going to stop."

"I can't stop, just as much as you can't choose to quit ballet out of nowhere. We'll wait until your last recital for Peter Pan, then we'll move."

"Alright. I'm telling Gabriel."

"Fine." Amelie called Gabe. She realized as she called him it was odd to have him on speed dial, considering they were supposed to be just friends. *I should change that.*

"Reyes."

"Bonjour."

"Hola. What's up?"

"There have been 2 attempts on Gerald's life and you said nothing?!" Amelie shrieked, both upset and concerned.

"Jack's suggestion. You found out?"

"Oui. He said we are moving to France and that might stop the attempts."

"Si. You get compensation?" *It must be a mission.*

"Non. I haven't checked our mail yet." Amelie went to the mailbox and saw their mail had been opened and sorted through. "Quelle? Overwatch went through our MAIL?!"

"No." *He'll investigate that.* She opened a 'paycheck', and saw it had a coded message that read,

'Infiltrate Talon-Gerald is investigating-take out: long-term mission. Be careful-Ana.'

"Merci. Money for a threat on my husband's life." Amelie said sarcastically.

"When are you leaving?"

"A week. Gerald wants me to finish Peter Pan." A grunt from the other side made Amelie aware Gabe heard her. "Gerald did apologize, Oui?"

"Si." Another grunt made Amelie frown.

"Are you okay?"

"Training."

"At 8?" Amelie asked, confused.

"Si."

"GABE, I WILL KILL YOU!"

"That doesn't sound like training."

"…Locked Jack in the freezer."

"Why?"

"He needs to chill." Amelie snorted, then sighed.

"Au Revoir, Mon Chere (Goodbye, my cherished)." Amelie winced, looking to see if Gerald had heard. He was busy packing, and clearly didn't hear. A long silence past, and an almost nervous Gabriel responded,

"Adios, Mi Amor (Bye, my love)." Amelie hung up, a light blush working along her cheeks. *What did I just do?! AHH!* She took a deep breath, and went to help pack. *It'll be fine. It was a slip up on my part, and it may have sounded like an inside joke between us. Stop blushing, Amelie!* Amelie nearly packed her ballet costume, and cursed in annoyance. Gerald noticed, and asked as he packed a dress shirt,

"Are you alright?"

"Oui, I am fine. Hearing your life being threatened didn't bother me at all." She replied hotly.

"I'm sorry, Amelie. It was not for public knowledge."

"I am not the public!" Amelie shouted, flinging a dress at Gerald. "I am your wife, and you chose not to tell me something like that?" She flung a shoe next, purposely aiming to the left of her brother. He dodged, frowning.

"I'm sorry!" Amelie cursed at him in French, furious at herself and him. "Amelie, S'il vous plaît, stop throwing things at me." She cursed once more, throwing another heel at him, then sat on the bed, pretending to be in tears. It wasn't hard, considering she nearly was. Gerald sat next to her. "I'm sorry, Amelie. It was direct orders from Commander Morrison not to tell anyone." Amelie's eyes flashed.

"Then I'll take this up with him."

"Amelie, no."

"Non. I don't care if he is commander of Overwatch: you don't hide attempted murder from the family of the man!" Gerald was obviously worried about this idea, but Amelie was determined. *One, as his wife, I would do this. Two, as his sister, I would do this. It just is natural.* Amelie started heading out, and Gerald stepped in front of the door, concern clear.

"Amelie, please. Calm down."

"Non! Gerald, get out of my way."

"Don't make a scene." Amelie frowned. *It would bring unwanted attention to everything.* "You know now, but if you talk to Commander Morrison, the public is guaranteed to hear about it somehow."

"He should have told me." Amelie said in defeat, sitting back down.

"I know. I'm sorry. Forgive me?"

"Always." Amelie said, smiling sadly.

"I have an early morning meeting in France. I need to get back to the Watchpoint."

"Okay. You better tell me if another attempt is made, Gerald." Amelie said as threateningly as she could.

"I will. Promise." A few minutes after Gerald would have arrived at the Watchpoint, Amelie's phone rang.

"Bonjour?"

"Hola." Amelie almost smiled involuntarily, but quickly stopped her mouth's movement.

"Why are you calling me on an unknown number?"

"Was that a mistake?" Amelie frowned.

"What a mistake?"

"Calling me your cherished. I looked it up." Amelie entered the bathroom and started blasting music, worried someone had bugged the house. They couldn't have bugged her phone: she always had it in her pocket in a metal container. She sighed, leaning back on the wall.

"I don't know. Maybe? Probably? What about you and your…mi amor?"

"…Si." Amelie cursed quietly.

"This can't happen, Gabriel. We can't be…"

"Si, but it's too late." Amelie turned on the shower and began pacing back and forth.

"Non, non. We can fix this. We could have a fight?"

"We'd find a way to make up."

"Oui, oui. Any ideas?" Amelie growled.

"Not that creative. Pretend to just be friends?"

"And slip up again? Non, that would not work."

"Now we're aware of it." Amelie thought a while. *True. I didn't know I-no, don't even think it-had feelings for him. We would be more careful, and it would be more suspicious if we suddenly stopped hanging out.*

"Alright, but we need to tell Gerald."

"He'll try to kill me."

"Then give him a back bruise again." Amelie snapped, hanging up. *What have we done?*


	8. Chapter 8

It was two days after the phone call, and Gabe walked into the ballet studio, surprised he was the only one dressed in all black. *Oh, well. Go ahead and judge me. I don't care.* He sat near the back, not overly interested in ballet, but Amelie had invited him, so why not? *I want to get away from Jack anyways.* After about 3 hours, Peter Pan was over. He was impressed by Amelie's skill. He managed to get backstage where Amelie was saying,

"Johnathan, I am married. I'm not going on a date with you: I don't care how many recitals we've done together."

"Aw, come on. It's just one date. Where's the harm?"

"Leave, now." Gerald came through the back, making Gabe frown. *Wasn't expecting him to show up. Hope he's not still sore about breaking his nose. I should stop aiming there during fights with friends. Nah. They'll be fine.* "Gerald, you made it?"

"For the last hour, but oui. Oh. Gabriel." Gabe waved, face blank. "What are you doing here?"

"Watched the recital." He stated, eyeing the possible threat. *Not defensive or offensive stance, relaxed but upset. Probably not going to attack me.* "Amelie invited me."

"Ah. You wanted to talk to me, Amelie?"

"Oui, I did. I want both of you to apologize." Gabe frowned intensely, as did Gerald.

"Why? He deserved it."

"Don't do sorry." Gabe said, frowning.

"I don't care. You hurt each other, and you used to be friends."

"That's a strong-" Gerald began, but one glare made him shut up. "…I'm sorry." *I should do that, anyways. I didn't mean to break his nose, and he was a good friend before.*

"…Siento (sorry)." Amelie smiled, and said,

"Okay. now that everything's okay between you two, we have a plane to catch." Gerald glared at Gabe, and he looked right back with a shrug. Gerald almost chuckled, smiling as they walked away. *And we're good again. Oh, yeah. I should wish Amelie a happy birthday.*

"Happy birthday." Amelie paused, confused, then smiled as she turned back.

"I'll call you when we land."

"Okay." *Oh. That means my birthday is in a week. Wonderful. And Jack's is in 2 months…when's Angela's again? S***! It's tomorrow!* Gabe groaned, rubbing his skull. *Forget it, I'll just get a card for her. Now I need to get a card. Great.* He chose a simple card that said, 'Happy Birthday', and he scribbled 'doc' underneath it. He tossed it in his room before heading to the training hall that Reinhardt had wanted to meet in. The old man was actually out of his armor for once, and Gabe frowned for the millionth time that day. "Si, abuelo (yes, grandpa)?"

"I decided to give you the final test today! Torbjorn, level 15!" Gabe grinned. Unknown to most of his teammates and friends, he does level 12 as a warm-up, then goes straight to level 16. He finished quickly, and Reinhardt shouted. "You finished the entire level in 30 minutes! That's 4 minutes longer than the record! You have now officially graduated!" Gabe chuckled once. "I suggest celebrating!"

"Have stuff to do."

"Stuff?! Why don't you celebrate with your friends?! It can wait for a day!" Gabe chuckled again.

"Going to need the training room."

"Of course! No one uses it on Saturdays! You'll have to work it yourself! There's a-" Gabe opened a voice activator on the wall. "Apparently it's not your first time! Don't pass out!" When Reinhardt left, Gabe said,

"Level 16." As he practiced, he thought through some things. *Deadlock gang: everyone that knows something is terrified of them. I've interrogated 10 people, and have gotten nowhere, other than their base is somewhere in the west. That narrows it down to Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona, Arkansas, and Louisiana. Better than 50 states, at least. Evidence of raids that the Deadlock Gang have claimed are central to Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico, so that narrows it down to around 500,000 square miles. I don't have a single lead left, so I'm at a dead end. Let's see. No, he was way too scared for anything to affect him. Maybe her again. If I could get someone from inside the gang, that'd be great.* The training program was finished, and he sighed, stretching.

"Gabriel? It's 7 o'clock on Saturday. Why are you training?" Gabe yawned, looking at Angela.

"To think."

"Jack wanted to talk to you." Gabe frowned. "He's in his office." Gabe nodded, patting the young girl's head. "Gabriel! Don't patronize me."

"Si, you're going to be 16." Gabe teased, stretching again. Angela glanced at the level he completed.

"GABRIEL REYES!" He winced, looking back at the angry doctor. "You were not thinking at level 20!"

"I was."

"You can't punish your body like that!"

"Wasn't. I go up to level 17 easy. Jack goes to level 16."

"Really? That's impressive. I'd love to watch you practice together sometime."

"You could too if you spent time training, not reading."

"I'm a doctor, Gabriel. I have to keep up with my studies. It's practicing mental skills." Gabriel half-listened to Angela's nervous rambling, pausing at hearing 'experimental nano-biology' outside Jack's door.

"How's that going?"

"Slowly, but progress is not made in a day, after all!" Gabe nodded, and entered the room. Jack was using his punching bag again and turned to face Gabe.

"Thanks, Angela. Do you mind if me and Gabe talk alone?"

"Of course not. I have to go, anyways." The doctor raced off, and Jack started by saying,

"I know you and I don't see eye to eye on a lot of things."

"Si."

"But, since you finished your training, we need to work it out." Gabe scowled. *That means he's going to make me conform to his ideals. "Look, were you joking? About hiring murderers and thieves and people like that?"

"No." Jack took a deep breath.

"Gabbi, we cannot do that. They are convicts and liars. We can't trust them."

"That's what you said about me." Gabe said bluntly.

"You were 7 and stole a car for 30 minutes so you could pick up your mom. It's different: I've changed." *No, you haven't, Jack. Don't lie to me.* "I'm telling you, it's a bad idea."

"You think I'll go to a prison and hire people?"

"I don't know what you'll do! You never say anything."

"We need people who aren't stuck on a book of laws. The world changed, and it's only going to get worse. If we only hire people with your ideals, you know what will happen?"

"No. Enlighten me."

"We'd be communists, Jack."

"I'm not that extreme."

"If someone doesn't keep it in check, you will be."

"And if everyone had your view, we'd be in the same boat we were in the omnic crisis."

"So, use both of the views."

"And that'll work how?"

"Don't know. Let's find out. We're done."

"Yeah." Jack said, and Gabe walked out, angry. *You never change, Jack. Honestly, neither do I. We'll never see eye to eye, but maybe we'll learn to work together someday. Am I being hopeful? That's new.* He laid down in his bed, waiting for Amelie's call.


	9. Chapter 9

Amelie collapsed on the hotel's bed, exhausted from all the pretending and jet lag. Thinking about their near kiss made her even more uncomfortable. Gerald was taking a shower, and Amelie took in the room. *One window, one bed, and a desk.* She sighed, dialing a number by hand.

"Reyes."

"Bonjour. You're still awake? It's 7 in the morning here."

"It's been later. How are you?"

"We are currently at a hotel. Overwatch is sending a taxi tomorrow so we can get to our new house. It's a mansion that my 'ancestors developed to boast their fortune.'."

"You're rich." Amelie chuckled at his bluntness. "Doc's birthday is tomorrow. I got her a card."

"So original." Amelie sarcastically replied to a quiet chuckle. "You didn't lock someone in a freezer again, did you?"

"Nope. He and I had a talk." Amelie frowned.

"So he talked and you pretended to listen?"

"Nope. We had as close to a conversation we can. No punches were thrown."

"Progress. So, any ideas on how that will work?"

"Think we'll just end up not talking ideals and he'll try to stop me from hiring convicts."

"I don't agree with either of your views. The world isn't black and white, and bad things aren't always done for good reasons."

"Rule 13."

"…quelle?"

"Have 23 rules I live by. Rule 13: sometimes people are wrong."

"Now I'm curious. Do you have a list? Should I take up embroidering and put them on pillows?" Gabe was chuckling, but when she said pillows, he full out laughed. "Seriously, 23 seems excessive."

"Nope. You want me to email them?"

"Oui. You've peaked my interest. So, you have rules while he has laws?"

"Si. They're less constrictive."

"True. Oh, Gerald is done with his shower. Au Revoir, mon cher."

"Adios, mi amor." Amelie hung up just as Gerald came out of the shower, stretching.

"There's only one bed, so…"

"We can sleep together. It'd be suspicious if we didn't." Gerald nodded, and Amelie entered the shower, yawning. She puzzled through a major issue: if she was supposed to be married to Gerald, how could she date Gabriel? *It's obvious we can't be 'just friends'. Well…if I never save his phone number and never call him by name, we should be fine. That'll be work, I hope. The hotel wasn't planned, so this room won't be bugged, so I can talk to Gerald.* Amelie came out of the shower in a bathrobe, and sat on the bed next to Gerald. "Gerald, what is Talon?"

"Right into it as always, I see. It's a terrorist organization that is directly against Overwatch principles. They think humanity becomes strong through conflict." Amelie frowned. *How odd. It's not untrue, but if that's not all the facts, either.* "They have their hands everywhere, and they're the ones who keep trying to kill me. I don't know anything about where their bases are, have limited knowledge about who supports them, and have no information at all about who works for them. People that know things are terrified to talk for good reason: everyone who has ends up dead before they tell me anything."

"Are there any typical methods?"

"Poison, sniping, 'accidents'. You name it, they've probably done it."

"So how do we infiltrate them?"

"I…we? Amelie, no. That is too dangerous. Who knows what they do to trainees if they have no issues murdering colleagues."

"This is my case, too, Gerald. Do you know what gangs they have in their pocket?"

"It seems like every gang we've come across has some kind of connection to them. It's a real-life conspiracy: no one knows enough to be useful, but they know just enough to keep us chasing a wild duck!"

"Wild goose."

"Purdon?"

"It's a wild goose chase, not duck." Amelie explained, tapping her thigh with her fingers. "So the only way to get them to reveal themselves is to get them to attack someone. I'm impressed someone could perform such clean strikes."

"You almost sound jealous." Gerald stated, frowning at his sister.

"They would have to think everything through in order to pull this all off. That takes either a genius or a cabinet of planners to have everything occur so neatly and not leave a trace. It's impressive, that's all. This will be a difficult mission because not only do we need to work together, but we need to do it in the public eye without anyone noticing." Gerald nodded, understanding.

"We should get to bed, though."

"Non, not yet. We have to talk about that almost kiss."

"Oh…" Gerald seemed embarrassed.

"We are married. We can't be so reluctant to show physical affection."

"Except…you know. That's bizarre…"

"Oui, I know, but we don't have a choice. Besides, we won't see each other very often, considering I'm a professional ballerina, and you are an Overwatch commander."

"Oui, but…" Gerald was fidgeting. "This is why I don't go undercover like this. It's hard for me to be someone I'm not."

"Don't. You be yourself, and I'll be the different person."

"…Alright, but does that mean we have to kiss…deeply?"

"Non, non. That's too far for even me. Just like a quick kiss on the cheek every once in a while; things like that. It's rare for people to show frequent public affection, but to not show any would draw unwanted attention. Last thing is I figured out how to handle Gabriel and my relationship."

"How?"

"As long as I don't say his name or save his phone number, I don't think anyone would catch notice."

"You're overthinking it. I'm not happy with you two being…whatever you are, but if you put his contact as grandpa or something of that nature, people would think you're talking to a relative."

"True. This is why you are the thinker. I can't come up with long-term ideas."

"You undersell yourself. Now, can we sleep? S'il vous plait (Please)?" Amelie chuckled.

"Oui, we can. Bonne nuit (Goodnight)."

"Bonne nuit (Goodnight)." Amelie laid awake for much longer than her brother. *What did I get myself into, starting a relationship during a long-term mission? Worst timing ever.* She finally fell asleep at close to midnight.


	10. Chapter 10

Gabe yawned, frowning at his vibrating phone. Glancing at his clock, he muttered, "Who the f*** calls people at 3 am?" He answered it. "Gabe."

"Amelie's gone."

"Huh?"

"Amelie's GONE! She was walking to her practice, and she disappeared. The videos don't have anything pointing to who took her, so it has to be Talon!" Gabriel wasn't catching all of it, and when the person switched to French, he asked sternly,

"Who is this?"

"Gerald."

"Oh. Gone?" Gabe frowned. *She wouldn't just disappear. It was probably on purpose.*

"Oui." More distressed French words followed one of the few words Gabe knew, and he said,

"Relax. She has a secret plan. Hang up, call 911 after getting rid of evidence you called me. It's a civilian kidnapping: this is a private number. Not good."

"Alright. Purdon for freaking out." The Frenchman hung up, and Gabe shoved his face into his pillow, screaming into the muffler. *Can't tell anyone about this: we aren't supposed to be in contact.* Taking a deep breath, he headed out to the front desk, where a clearly bored and tired man was playing Hunie Pop.

"Give me my check."

"Oh! Mr. Reyes! You're up early." The man quickly hid the game: Gabe didn't care if he was playing a game or not. He scrambled out a check, shakenly handing it to the commander. "…Please don't tell anyone I was playing that."

"Don't care." Gabe walked to a normal black car, rammed in the keys, and slammed on the gas, growling. *I'll visit Mi Madre and deposit my check. I need some space right now.* He slowed down when he got to his home town, not wanting to get arrested again. Pulling into an apartment, he called, "Madre?"

"Gabriel? Mi hijo (Son)! What are you doing? I thought you had work?"

"Taking a break." The woman had black hair and black skin, but her eyes were bright blue. She was also wearing a green short sleeve shirt and jeans and carrying a pistol. "Madre, why are you carrying your gun?"

"I was going to the target range. We could go to the ring instead!"

"Sure. Give me that." The woman pulled it away, frowning.

"No! I have my gun license."

"And no holster."

"Give me yours. You never carry a gun when you're not on duty." Gabe sighed, pulling the holster off.

"Si, Madre." Gabe put a guy into a chokehold in the wrestling mat to his mom's cheering.

"Go for the eyes!"

"It's non-lethal combat, madre!"

"He won't die!" Gabe slammed the guy head into the mat, knocking him out cold. "LIGHTWEIGHT!"

"Let's see you do better!" The guy's trainer shouted, angry. The woman punched his face, knocking him out.

"No wonder he's a lightweight: you are, too."

"He meant in the ring."

"He should have said that, then. Let's get carnitas." Gabe was picking at his food, not hungry. "What's bothering you?"

"Can't talk about it." His mom frowned, looking at him. "No, madre." Gabe sighed. His mother frowned.

"Let me guess. Something happened to a girl you like, but people either don't know you like her; you're dating and no one knows it; or you can't tell anyone you've been in contact."

"How?"

"I know my son. Remember when you saved those kids?" Gabe sighed.

"Si. Could we not talk about past illegal actions?"

"Spoilsport. You should get back to headquarters."

"Si, but-"

"No 'para's! You have a job. Good job on the wrestling mat. Probably shouldn't have said to go for the eyes."

"You get passionate. Love you."

"Love you too. Kill some bad guys." He stopped by his bank, sighing as he looked at his paycheck. *You'd think I'd get paid more.* Inside, only 2 people were working, and judging from the fear and eyes darting towards the door as he came in, they didn't want to be there. A clock with broken glass said 9:01. Several people where in lines to do business. *Why only 2 people working on a payday? Whatever. Poor management is their issue.* He got into line, impatiently crossing his arm. He began tapping his fingers against his right bicep. *Come on. I have papers to read and fill out. The bank needs to fire the guy who came up with this.* He inched toward the clerk, and as the clock chimed eleven, he finally got to the desk. *About time.* The clerk smiled at the man, saying while glancing at the time in a thick Spanish accent,

"So sorry for the wait."

"No te preocupes." She smiled, and said,

"How may I help you, sir?"

"Deposit and transfer."

"Please slide your card across." He complied with her statement as four people came in. One was a bizarrely large man that demanded the attention of everyone, 2 locals, and a bored looking kid in a cowboy hat. People began panicking, racing out of the strangers' way. Gabriel didn't do more than glance. *Big one is a Northerner, and the boy's Texan. Doesn't want to be here, either. Not my problem as of yet, but I still wonder what a Texan is doing this far away from home.* The clerk started shaking, but Gabriel was calm as he said, handing her his check,

"How do I transfer?"

"…D-do you have…account number?" Gabe nodded.

"Do I type it in?" The big man turned bright red, shouting,

"Hey! Don't you know who we are?!"

"Gang. Doing my business and leaving. Waited an hour." The clerk continued onwards at Gabriel's nod, saying as politely as she could while shaking and being terrified,

"Just type it in on the screen." Gabriel began doing that as the man screamed,

"Kill him!" One of the locals began going forward, raising his fists as Gabriel finished typing, glancing at him. He saw his belt's insignia and sighed. *Deadlock gang. Now it's my problem. Hey, maybe I'll figure out where their base is.* He turned squarely as the woman was typing. He hit the coming man in the neck with a flat hand, hitting him square in the jugular, causing him to choke. He tried to hit Gabriel in the stomach, but Gabriel dropped, taking the hit to his chest and flatting the man against the ground. The woman said, too scared to look up,

"H-how much are you wanting to transfer?"

"500." He saw the man stop convulsing, out cold. *Well, that was just sad. This lady has guts: I'll give her a tip for her trouble.* "What's your account number?"

"I-I'll put it in." He turned to face the others, and the large man had lost his bluster, turning pale. He grabbed the bag of cash they had succeeded in getting and ran. Gabriel resisted chuckling. *I could see a tail.* The other local was scared, but stood his ground, looking at his companion in worry. The boy sat up, looking worried, saying,

"Get him. I got the black guy." Gabriel frowned. *That first guy was likely the best fighter of the four. No way this kid can 'get' me. And the kid's not Texan: he's an Oaky, even farther from home.* He took a solid stance as the local started pulling the injured man away, fists at the ready. Gabriel didn't attack, eyeing his so-called opponent in chagrin. *Poor stance, no fighting capability at all. How does he think he'll take me out? And black guy? Really?* The kid reached for a missing gun, and Gabriel took his movements in. *He knows how to shoot. Well, too: I'd bet money.* Gabriel took three steps forward, punching him in the face and wrapping his arms around the boy's neck. He tried squirming out, but Gabriel's grip tightened.

"H-how much would you like to transfer?"

"150." The girl looked up in surprise as Gabe slung the kid across his shoulder.

"Cuanto cuesta?"

"One hundred and fifty." Gabriel put his bank card away casually, shifting his load a little. "Adios." He walked to his car and saw that it had been dug into by several keys and growled. "That didn't even accomplish anything. Why are people scared of this gang? Whatever. I don't care." He dropped the kid in the front seat and looked at him closer. *Tan, so he's been in the gang for a while, but isn't high up considering he didn't want to be there and his age. Fourteen at most. Knows how to shoot. Don't get the cowboy hat. Has guts if he tried to fight someone way above his skill level. Or he's an idiot. No fashion sense. Wonder what his name is. Probably something dumb like Joel or Jack.* Gabriel buckled the boy, and drove to the base, parking right in his usual spot. He opened the boy's door and heard a snore. *Funny.* He slung the boy over his shoulder, entering the building. Angela flew by, pausing at the sight of Gabriel carrying an unconscious boy.

"Gabriel, who is that?" He shrugged.


	11. Chapter 11

Amelie woke up in a well-lit room, laying on a bed. *What?* Sitting up, she hit her head against something. She tried to raise her hands, but straps prevented her from moving. She saw a man sitting right next to her bed, looking down at her in complete calmness.

"Hello." It was a stranger, and Amelie's eyes widened as he raised a drill. "Here is what we will do. I am going to torture you. You are going to beg me to stop, no, please, blah, blah, blah. I will not. You will break, and then we will begin again."

Amelie hurt. She hurt worse than anything she'd ever experienced. She had no idea how long she had been imprisoned, or how long she had been a victim of needless torture. *They're not even asking me questions. Just…hurting me…* The man came back, and she shrank away, terrified. Covering her face with bloody hands, she heard a calm,

"I recently discovered you have a severe fear of spiders. It's called arachnophobia. Interestingly, most people have some form of it or another fear, usually involving insects." *Where is he going with this?* A black jar was raised. "I lack that fear in any way." The jar went upside-down, and spiders fell out. Amelie screamed.

*Can't forget my mission. I must infiltrate Talon. People are coming to rescue me. My brother will come.* Amelie repeated to herself as it worsened day by day. This time, when the jar tipped over, she did not scream, but watched in terror as they crawled over her body. "Interesting. You are more resilient than I thought. Or…do you still think people are coming to rescue you? Let me explain something. Even if they were, your husband and his friends have no idea where our base is. I will bring a video tomorrow and show you exactly what your friends are doing now."

The man did as he said he would. The video was projected onto the ceiling. "This is live." Gerald was dancing with a woman, and Amelie choked back a sob. *He's forgotten me? How could he? He is no better than mother and father. No! I must remember my mission. He's letting me infiltrate.* "This is your secret lover that your husband doesn't know about." Gabriel was kissing a woman. "NON!" Amelie shouted, struggling against her restraints. *He wouldn't! He just couldn't do that to me. Right? Yes, of course! He wouldn't do that to me. It's all a trick.*

"Calm down, madam. After all, I am just showing you the truth. Your husband has forgotten you. Your lover has replaced you. The only people who still think you're worth anything is us." *It's not true. Don't fall for it. It's all to get inside your head. You are better than this. Don't be a fool.*

The sessions were getting easier and easier. Amelie wasn't sure if it was because her body was becoming numb to the pain, or the sessions were actually being gentler. The man spoke more and more, but nothing he said made sense. It was like he talked to himself. *I must remember my mission. I cannot fail them, even if they failed me.*

Amelie was beginning to look forward to the sessions. When they went on, there was sound due to her screaming and his talking, but when there wasn't, it was silent except for her thoughts. The sessions had lost all their meaning by now: she just wanted someone to be there.

Amelie now was enjoying the silence. There was a comfort there: no pain, and she didn't have to be afraid of the silence. The sessions were now a way of keeping track of time: 157 sessions had occurred. *Must remember my mission. But what is my mission? Infiltrate Talon. How could I forget?*

The woman couldn't remember her name. All that was there was silence and pain: there was no need for names in that kind of world. 203 sessions. *Infiltrate Talon. Remember my mission. And remember Gabriel.*

The Sessions stopped hurting. The spiders weren't scary. The man noticed this. "Spiders are curious creatures. People say they have no emotion. They can't feel a thing. But if you watch as they kill, you know this isn't true. They kill to feel something: to remember they can feel. Makes you jealous, doesn't it?" 237 sessions.

She spoke as the man started collecting the spiders. "S'il vous plait, monsieur. Leave them…" The man smiled wickedly.

"You are beginning to take form, and it won't be long until you are in control as you should." She waited until the door closed to frown. *Who is he talking to? And why do I feel so…numb? Infiltrate Talon and remember Gabriel. That's all you need to remember.* 350 sessions.

She was handed a spider and held at a gunpoint. "Squash it." She complied, feeling a twinge of something. *What was that feeling?* 352 sessions.

She was handed a snake. "Kill it." She did, ripping its head off. Another twinge occurred. *What is that feeling? It feels almost…happy? No. It's not that. Interesting.* 354 sessions.

She was handed a dog. "Kill it." She watched the life drain from the puppies' eyes as she wrung its neck. "How do you feel?" She looked up with a frown.

"I don't know." *It feels refreshing, almost.* 360 sessions.

She was handed a rabbit. "Kill it." She did, strangling it with her former binds. *This feeling. It's…something else. Refreshing doesn't cover it.* 362 sessions

She was handed a sniper rifle. A bound and gagged person was forced inside. Amelie stood up, face blank. "Kill it." She raised the gun to her skull, and the woman looked up, eyes pleading. She fired, and blood spattered everywhere, hitting her already red dress. "How do you feel?" She looked up with a small, nearly invisible smile.

"I felt alive." The man smiled.

"Welcome home, Widowmaker." She frowned.

"Home? Welcome? You are sorely mistaken." She raised the gun to her torturer, aiming right between the eyes. "That implies I can feel something, monsieur." She fired, and a stranger came in, clapping with a small grin.

"Talon commands you now, Widowmaker, and if you disobey, you die."

"Understood, mademoiselle." *I infiltrated them. Or did they infiltrate me? I can't feel anything.*

"Your first mission is to assassinate Gerald Lacroix."

"He will feel the widow's kiss, mademoiselle." *Why does this feel wrong? I will find Gabriel, but this takes priority.* 370 sessions.


	12. Chapter 12

Gabriel sighed, opening his new journal and writing a quick overview of the past 7 weeks.

'First week: News was spread. Hunt for her very active.

Third week: Worst is believed. Gerald heartbroken. Don't know how to feel.

Fifth week: Cowboy finally talking: shouted at Jack. Random woman kissed me. Punched her in the jaw.

Sixth week: Cowboy shouting at Jack more. Still don't know his name. Jack won't let me talk to him. I don't want to believe she's dead.

Seventh week: Cowboy shouting again. No sign of her-' A voice interrupted him.

"Commander Reyes? I have your laundry here." Reyes opened the door, unamused. A blonde woman was looking at him with googly eyes. "I thought I could help you out a little."

"…Gracias." He took the basket inside.

"I love it when you speak Portuguese."

"Spanish." *I really want to punch you now.*

"Whatever. So…are you alone?" She batted her eyes. *Ugh.*

"You're here." She let out a sick-sounding laugh.

"You're funny…can I come in?"

"No."

"Can you come out, then?" Gabe sighed. *Every single day, this woman harasses me. I'm getting tired of her bulls***. Calm down. She'll get it eventually.*

"Fine. What?" She kissed him suddenly. Pulling away, he decked her. "What the f***, lady?! Get away from me." She looked back in amazement.

"You have the greatest punches ever!"

"…I'm reporting you. Leave."

"Will you go out with me?" Gabe didn't bother giving the woman any kind of response. *Freak.* "Please? I promise I'll behave. Come on…" He got to the front desk, and she scurried away.

"I'm reporting someone for sexual harassment. She's been on my back constantly." After finishing that paperwork, Gabe went to interrogation. To his surprise, Jack was cursing in the hallway, furious as he bent. "Hola?"

"Lowlifes can't be helped, Gabe. Take that a**hole away." He stormed off before Gabriel could say anything, and Gabe entered the room he had come from. It was the cowboy, and he was wincing in pain. *Jack punched him in the gut. S***.* The kid noticed him in no time.

"What the hell do ya'll want?"

"A kid. S***."

"Yeah?! I bet that old guy out there figured out otherwise when I kicked him in the balls!" Gabe paused, then lost it. the kid just looked confused more than offended.

"Jack was kicked in the d*** by a kid!"

"Pardon, but what?" Gabe was leaning against the wall, nowhere close to being done laughing. After a few minutes, Gabe said,

"Kid, you're an idiota. Throwing away your life for criminals?"

"They ain't criminals! Well, they are, but that's not all they are. I ain't squealing, especially to a cop." *Guts and honor? We need more people like that.*

"Tell us where the base is."

"So ya'll can kill them? No way!"

"We don't kill unless we need to. Way I see it, you've got two choices. Say nothing and waste the rest of your life in a cell, or work for me, and make a difference."

"I ain't no hero." Gabe stated.

"There aren't heroes: there's people who talk about the wrong in the world, and there's people who f****** do something about it."

"The hell do you care? Your buddy probably busted my gut!"

"I don't: you do. One-time offer, cowboy." The boy leaned back, thinking.

"Why the hell not? Got nothing better to do." Gabe laughed.

"What's your name, cowboy?"

"Jessie McCree. Yours?"

"Boss. Let's get training."

"Your name ain't actually boss, is it?" Gabe didn't answer. "Right. Deadlock's got a hangout down on Route 66. Ain't too easy to find, and it's a bottleneck." *Great. I finally have a place.* Gabe's phone rang, and he didn't answer it, letting it ring. Jessie entered the training hall, and Gabe said as he left,

"Level 2."

"Yes, sir." The session began, and Gabe answered his phone.

"Reyes."

"Amelie's back! The police found her, and she doesn't seem too rough. The hospital is checking her out to make sure now."

"Good." *F***, that's a weight off my chest.* "Have her call me."

"Of course. Merci, my friend."

"Same." Gabe hung up, then went back inside to check on Jessie. He had fallen on his face. *Okay, he has no sense of balance, grace, or anything. I just hope he can shoot.* Gabe joined in, not even bothered by the setting. Jessie got the hang of it quick, and Gabe said, "Level 10."

"Are you sure, sir? That's a big jump."

"Do it." The technician obeyed, and Jessie adapted to this setting as well. *He's an adapter. That's probably why he lasted so long in the gang.* "Where's your gun?"

"Some of the guys challenged me to go on a raid without my gear. I figured why not."

"Wanted you dead."

"Wouldn't be surprised by that. The leader hated my guts." Gabe stopped, walking off. His phone rang, and he answered it.

"Reyes."

"Bonjour. Is this Gabriel?" Gabe frowned. *It's Amelie, but she sounds…weird.*

"Si. Are you okay, Amelie?"

"I am fine."

"What happened?"

"I don't remember." *Okay, something's not right."

"Are you sure you're feeling okay?"

"I c-am fine." She corrected herself mid-sentence. "How is the cowboy?" Gabe paused. *How would she know about him? I found him the day she disappeared. She can't know about him.*

"In prison."

"Hmm. And Jack?"

"Thought this was a secret."

"What's the point? People will find out eventually."

"He's fine. Cowboy kicked him in the d***."

"That had to hurt."

"How's Gerald?"

"He's worried. I told him I'm fine, but he took me to a hospital to get a professional opinion." A tinge of emotion pierced the cold voice, and Gabe frowned more.

"He kept calling me while you were missing."

"That was foolish."

"Yup."

"Are you coming to France soon? I need to see you."

"Be there in a week." *Something's definitely not right. She's not as okay as she's making it sound.*

"Oui. I'll meet you at Eric Kayser Bakery at the airport."

"Okay. Are you sure you're alright?"

"…Au revoir." The call ended, and Gabe went back inside to see Jessie sprawled out on the ground. *This is going to be a long week.*


	13. Chapter 13

Amelie was simply sitting in the bakery, watching the different people as she waited for Gabriel. *Why can't I feel anything? Everything is numb.* She recognized Gabriel as soon as he sat down.

"What's going on, Amelie?"

"I don't know."

"You don't look good."

"Aw, I even dressed up for you." She wasn't kidding: she was wearing a dark purple dress and high heels.

"You look hot, but you don't look good." Gabriel clarified.

"I am going to kill Gerald." Gabriel was expressionless. *What's with that face?*

"Okay." Amelie frowned. Her heart felt like it stopped beating. "There's a spider on you." Amelie looked down. Sure enough, a small spider was on her shoulder, and she calmly move it to the floor. "Hmm."

"So, I'm going to kill my husband. And I know I can trust you."

"That's good." Gabriel muttered, rubbing his head. "I've got a meeting. I'll meet you at your house." Amelie shrugged as Gabriel stood up. He touched her shoulder, making her look up. "You do look nice, Amelie." He walked off, and Amelie sat, thinking. *He complemented me, and it felt nice. So killing isn't the only thing that gives emotion. Interesting. Why didn't Gerald make me feel anything, though? He's my husband. Shouldn't he give me feelings as well?* Amelie stood up and walked along the Paris streets, still thinking. *Unless I never truly loved him. It wouldn't be unheard of, after all.* She found herself at a gymnastics practice place. *I could use some practice, and most meetings last 2 hours.* She first stretched, lifting her leg over her head easily. *It feels odd to call Gerald husband, though. Something doesn't seem to be fitting.* She easily spent an hour there before Gerald appeared.

"I thought I would find you here. Are you ready to go home?" Amelie forced a smile on her face with the man she knew was cheating.

"Oui." Gerald had his arm around her waist and was extremely careful. "I'm not breakable, Gerald."

"You were in enemy hands for 7 weeks, Amelie. I just want to make sure you're okay."

"I'm fine." Her smile faded, replaced with a blank look.

"You aren't acting like it." The false smile returned.

"I'm fine. Don't worry so much." When they got to their home, Gerald turned on a radio, blasting the noise. Amelie winced, unused to loud noises. Gabriel was sitting in the living room with them, and she asked, "What's wrong?"

"You said you were going to kill him. I figured it was part of your plan: he didn't know what the hell I was talking about." Amelie had a blank face. *He has a knife on his belt, no gun. Gerald is unarmed.* She went at Gabriel in silence. He stepped to the right, but she followed, fists impacting his stomach without remorse. He took the hits, but didn't hit back, grabbing her two hands firmly. She raised her leg into his groin, making him grunt and let go. Gerald grabbed her arms, pinning them to her sides. She headbutted right into his face, not even trying to slow down. He let go, and Amelie pulled out Gabriel's belt knife, going for Gerald's throat. Gabriel grabbed her hand, squeezing harshly until she had to let go. She decked him in the gut again, but he absorbed them like it was nothing, putting Amelie in a chokehold and pinning her arms to the ground. "Relax." She ignored him, bending her leg to kick him in the kidney. He grunted but refused to let go. Amelie knew she was going to pass out if he didn't stop, so she relaxed her body completely. Gerald sighed.

"She's unconscious." Gabriel didn't loosen any of his grips. "Gabe, let go." He didn't reply. "Gabe, you're going to kill her." Amelie felt someone pulling Gabe away from her as her head began swimming. "Let go!" Gabriel refused, saying two words:

"She's faking." Before Amelie passed out. She woke up tied to a wooden chair, music playing loudly. Gabriel was watching her, expressionless again. Gerald was pacing, muttering in French next to him.

"How did this happen? I never should have agreed to go undercover! Look what happened! Amelie's been brainwashed, and now I have no idea what I'm supposed to do: let her complete her mission and kill me or pull the plug!"

"Don't speak French. She's awake." Gerald sat across from her, worry clear.

"Do you remember me?"

"You're my target and husband."

"Talon bought it. That's good."

"Quiet, Gabe. I'm your brother."

"I'm sure that's illegal." Amelie stated. Gabe snickered.

"No, we're not married."

"We're divorced siblings, then." Amelie said. All she knew was Gerald was her husband, and she had to kill him. Gabriel just didn't fit. Gerald was about to try again when Gabe said,

"Your mission was-"

"To infiltrate Talon and gather as much information as I could."

"To do that, you need to?"

"Kill him."

"There a personal reason?"

"He cheated on me."

"You're married: you cheated on him."

"And you cheated on me with that woman!"

"Not with consent."

"Okay, we can work with this then." Gerald said. Amelie frowned. "Your mission is the same: Infiltrate Talon and gather information about their operations. We're going to pretend like this never happened. You had a flashback for some reason and went nuts."

"My sudden appearance could've triggered it." Gabe offered. "So what about 'kill you'?"

"We'll figure it out." Gabe clearly didn't believe it, but shrugged, cutting free Amelie. She didn't question it but was extremely confused. "You need to get going. Overwatch will get suspicious." Gabe chuckled.

"They already are. Adios, mujer. Desk jockey." Gabe walked out, and Gerald turned to Amelie, face solid with resolve. *That seemed very strange. I'll need to do some more research about this before reporting things in.* "You're going to kill me next week, Amelie."


	14. Chapter 14

Gabe got back to Colorado to Jessie being trained by none other than Ana. "Excellent aim, but your dodging is shoddy. Is this really the raei albaqar (Cowboy in Arabic) you told me about?" Jessie had sweat pouring off of him as he tried to catch his breath.

"Ma'am, can't you just call me cowboy instead of that? I know what you're calling me." Gabe scoffed.

"30 laps, cowboy."

"Yeah, yeah…yankee." Gabe corrected his former statement.

"50." Jessie's face fell, but he set to work. Ana chuckled.

"When did 'yankee' become a thing?"

"I wouldn't tell him my name and he wanted to annoy me. Why'd he call you ma'am?"

"He has ever since our first day. Doesn't he call you sir?"

"Most respect I've gotten is less backtalk then Jack. Think he's mission ready?"

"Yes. Have you picked some more people?"

"It's harder than you think. So far I've got him, me, and a few others."

"Oh, Jessie has mentioned he knows other languages, but he won't speak them."

"He can't: accent is awful. Understanding it isn't an issue. So far I know he knows Spanish and Arabic."

"How you figure that out?" Ana asked, curious.

"For one, when I cursed, he knew exactly what I said in Spanish, and for another, that's not a common word in Arabic. What did it even mean?"

"Cowboy." Gabe's phone rang, and he answered it, chuckling lightly. Jessie was already on the other side of the yard.

"Reyes."

"Get a surgery table ready. I have a patient in dire need of medical attention." Gabe began walking as soon as he registered the forced calm in Angela's voice. *She's matured a lot over the years.*

"Talk to me."

"Sword and burn injuries. It's unlikely he'll survive. Mostly second degree burns along the upper part of his body, 3 different shattered leg bones, at least 6 broken ribs, and 35 different stab wounds. I don't know where he received such deadly injuries, but it's rather terrifying."

"Where's he from?"

"I was on a research opportunity in Japan when I found him yesterday. I've been treating him in a local hospital, but they didn't have the right equipment. 20 grams of ketamine."

"Why call me when there's a major medical thing?"

"In case I start speaking German on accident." Angela explained as rustling sounded.

"Haven't done that in 3 years, doc." Gabriel stayed on the line as he ordered the assistants to prepare a table. Angela had the more and more common forced calm in her voice. It was quiet when Gabe heard a moan and ramblings.

"What is he saying?"

"He's delusional. He's just repeating, 'dragon'." Gabe frowned at the translator's comment.

"Okay. We will arrive in a few minutes." Angela hung up just as Gabe got back to the training yard. Jessie was taking a rest, panting heavily. Gabe barked,

"Who said to stop, cowboy?!" Jessie turned white and kept running. Ana frowned.

"I know that tone. What happened?"

"Angela has another patient."

"That's not it."

"You're not mi Madre, Ana. Stop trying to be." Gabe crossed his arms, watching Jessie in silence. Ana sighed and walked off. *Angela's getting more involved with me and Jack, and our heads are butting more and more. I don't think we'll be working things out again, especially when he finds out what I'm doing behind his back. This kid's going to pass out. He's persistent, at least.* "Reinhardt, make sure he keeps going." Reinhardt nodded, watching his own trainees as Gabe walked to the cafeteria. Grabbing two bagels, he walked back, finding Jessie still going, though he was barely breathing. "Stop. Breakfast."

"Breakfast?! It's 11!" Reinhardt shouted, surprised. Gabe ignored him, and Jessie shrugged towards him. They stopped in the firing range. Jessie joked between breathes,

"You finally goin' to show me your aim?" Gabe scoffed, tossing him a bagel. He looked at it like he'd never seen one before. "The hell is this?"

"A bagel."

"This ain't a bagel. What kinda person eats an untoasted, plain bagel with nothin' on it?" Gabe took a bite of his own without a word. "…You're a freak, boss. So, what's next? More trainin' inside, laps?" Jessie seemed bored and tired. Gabe shook his head, slapping Jessie's shoulder.

"Rest up: we fly out at 0500." Jessie frowned.

"Where to?"

"California. Congrats. You finished training. Gabriel Reyes." Jessie grinned.

"Jessie Marricone. McCree's just a code name."

"Still going to call you cowboy."

"I'm gonna call ya Reyes." Gabe scoffed. "So…I'm pretty sure there's more than just Reinhardt, Mrs. Ana, that Morrison guy, and you."

"You'll meet them eventually." Gabe walked off, and Jessie sighed.

"Guess I'll explore a little, then." Gabe headed to the computer room, finding Torbjorn working on something. He looked up, surprised.

"I haven't seen you come in here since-" Gabe cut him off, not wanting to think of Amelie at the moment.

"What are you doing?"

"It's an AI that Winston is helping with. He's calling it Athena, of all things…" Gabe tuned the builder out, knowing he'll be talking for a while, and typed in Jessie Marricone. A few things showed up, the most prominent being a young boy's missing poster. *He's a missing's person. Let's see. He was declared to be deceased and the investigations were dropped, but his dad was positive a gang had something to do with it. Funny how accurate that was.* Gabe noticed Torbjorn had disappeared, and he left the room. He found Torbjorn and Jessie talking.

"So ya'll are working on somethin' like an Omnic?"

"Similar, but Omnics have more freewill. With the other AIs becoming corrupted, I'm hoping limiting her creativity will prevent that from happening here."

"That don't seem too right to me, but you're the builder. Hey, boss." Gabe raised an eyebrow. "I'm gonna check out the cafeteria. Hopefully bagels aren't everything you have. Bye."

"Seems like you have someone that's curious."

"He's seems very bright. What he sees in you, I have no idea." *A a**hole, Torbjorn. That's what he sees.*


	15. Chapter 15

Amelie frowned at her sleeping husband. They had gone over the plan thousands of times over the past week: She would kill him for real. It would solidify her position in Talon. She would continue gathering intel and hold onto it until a new Investigation Commander was chosen, then she would give the intel to the commander and boom: she was free, but she wasn't sure about this. *Why is this man so eager to die? I don't understand his dedication to my safety. I have openly portrayed my distain. I have told him he will pay for his betrayal, yet he doesn't seem to mind.* Amelie shook her head.

*This is a necessary part of my mission, and a rather enjoyable part at that. He must die. It is that simple.* She put a knife to his throat and cut it open, watching the blood drain. Her mind started screaming, and she grabbed it from pain. Suddenly, things flooded back. *Oh, f***! What did I do? What have I done? Gerald, no! Come back. I can't survive without you. Brother, please…* She felt herself crying, but forced her face to remain neutral, feeling blood beginning to pool at her knees as she knelt on the bed, next to her now dead brother.

*He was always there for me. When mother and father hated me, he was there to protect me. When we were on the street, he was there to provide, and I killed him. I killed my only family. What have I done? I can't…I can't do this. This isn't possible. It's stupid. I'm going to die, or I'm going to-no. Amelie, get a grip. You have a mission. You have to do this, or his sacrifice was for nothing. Think it through like an emotionless monster would. First, first…first, you have to get the blood off of you. you can't get to the rendezvous point covered in blood, people will get suspicious. Shower, then.* Amelie did just that, preparing a shower exactly like a machine would.

*Next, be what people expect you to be: a monster who only feels something when they kill. Smile. You completed your first mission without being suspected even once.* She forced a small smile onto her face, feeling sick with herself at her own disregard for her brother's murder. *Next, get something that is practical and quiet to wear. You're not a ballerina or a spy: you're a coldhearted killer.* She pulled out a purple, blue, and black bodysuit, with web-like designs. She put it on. *Put your hair up. You can't fight with your hair in your face.* She put her long hair into a simple ponytail, finding it the most practical without spending a lot of time on it. *Finally, clear your mind of everything but your two missions: gather intel and follow Talon's orders.* She set off to the rendezvous at a set pace, refusing to allow herself to cry. She made her way without interruptions, finding a single person at the place.

"Wonderful night, chica." Amelie almost frowned, not recognizing the woman. It wasn't quite a woman, though. It looked like a 14-year-old girl, with purple extensions, a black trench coat, and purple high heels, similar to Amelie's own heels. Even if she was supposed to be a heartless killer, she had to have heels. "Perfect weather, too. Not too hot, not too cold. Perfecto for a walk after a nice shower after a kill, hmm?" Amelie stated,

"Est-ce que tu parles français (Do you speak French)?" The girl turned, eyes shining.

"You know what I said. No te preocupes (Don't worry), Widowmaker. I work for Talon, too. Call me Sombra. So, how was your night?" *She testing me. Don't show anything.*

"Uneventful."

"Come on. I want details! Why else would I come all the way from our headquarters to meet you?"

"Orders, perhaps?"

"Ooh, sarcasm. I like it. Was he awake? How'd you do it?"

"I got it done. That's what matters."

"Don't you want to relive it a little? Feel alive again?" Amelie pinned Sombra against a wall, expressionless, and put the blade to her throat.

"Do not test me, little girl. I will kill you." Sombra chuckled.

"Relajar, amiga (Relax, friend). I was only asking." *Make up something as to why you don't want to talk about it. You feel guilty isn't acceptable.*

"Reliving it is a nuisance." Sombra chuckled.

"You'll fit right in, spider." *That's what I'm afraid of.* When they got to Talon's base, Amelie was immediately shown to her room. Someone groaned on the upper bunk.

"You're the new girl, aren't you? Don't bother me or Richard."

"Who is Richard?" A meow echoed, and Amelie looked down. *Aw! What an adorable calico.*

"You moron! You woke him up!" The tall woman climbed down, grumbling, and knelt over the cat, back to Amelie. *She's annoying, and I can't have a roommate butting in on everything I do. Be the killer.* Amelie took her knife and cut the woman's throat out. Turning to do the same to the cat, she paused. *I already killed an innocent, and I undoubtedly will kill more: I'm not letting a cat, of all things on the earth, be part of my guilt. What would be a good reason not to kill it? Ah. It didn't annoy me.* As Amelie expected, another Talon soldier came in to figure out what happened. Amelie was reading Grey's Anatomy.

"What happened here?"

"She annoyed me." The person started to question her more, but Amelie looked at him with dead eyes.

"Never mind. I'll report we lost her in. Sorry to bother you, ma'am." The man left, and Amelie calmly continued reading, petting the out of side cat as it purred.

Out of story: I will not be incorporating Moria. She doesn't fit with the rest of the story. Sorry to disappoint anyone.


	16. Chapter 16

Gabe walked into the base, furious from a mission gone bad, finding out Gerald was killed, Jack finding out about Blackwatch, and another argument between him and Jack. Compounded onto Jessie getting severely injured, himself getting hurt, and Amelie still not explaining what happened, he was having a very bad day. Gabe growled as he entered the medical bay to Jessie flexing a new metallic arm, and Angela making sure it was attached properly.

"There. That should be firm enough. Are you sure you weren't otherwise injured?"

"I'm good. It's just a missing arm." Jessie joked, but it was clear in his voice it was a major deal to him.

"I can see why Gabriel recruited you. Speaking of you, let me-"

"Not right now, doc. Give us a few minutes."

"Gabriel, I'm sure that is not-" She fell silent at a glare, then sighed. "My other patient needs a new oxygen tank, anyways." Jessie started,

"Boss, I'm sor-"

"Do you have a death wish?"

"What? No." Jessie looked shocked. "I did what I did to protect the others. If I hadn't have kept them occupied, someone else would've gotten hurt, or died."

"You call losing an arm protecting others?! What good will it do them to lose a teammate?"

"It's better than lettin' them die when I could've done something!" Jessie spat right back.

"I'll ask once more: Do you have a death wish?" Jessie punched Reyes in the mouth with his metal arm, anger pouring off in waves. *There's the fire I saw in interrogation.*

"Let's get one thing straight, boss. I don't have a death wish. I've seen plenty of junk, and I'm still kickin'. I've got issues, but a death wish ain't one of them. I'll do my job best I can. That's what God set out for me, and I aim on doing his will. Now back off." Gabe chuckled.

"Good. If you lose another limb, I'm kicking your a** back to training. You can come back in, Angela." She did, covering her mouth at Gabe's bleeding lip.

"What did he do?!" Gabe sighed.

"I'm fine. Fix him up." Angela grabbed him.

"Oh, no. You both are getting medical attention." 1 hour later, Gabe was finally released from Angela's custody, and he made his way to his room, where he had left his phone due to the mission. There was a message on it from an unknown person. He played it, frowning.

"I can't talk long. I killed him." *Well, there goes a few possibilities. She sounds pretty calm.* Her voice was very quiet, so he doubted she had a long of time or privacy, hence why she didn't call again. "I killed my brother…anyways, I just…needed to talk to someone, and you're the only one that knows. From what I've gotten, when I go on missions, comms and tracking are down to lessen chances of being spotted. I'll call you soon, mon Cherie." The message ended, and Gabe sighed in exhaustion. *My girlfriend's in permanent enemy territory at constant risk of death, everyone thinks she's evil, the cowboy's out of active duty for a few days to adjust to his new arm and heal, the Antarctic eco-point hasn't contacted us in 8 months and Jack's getting freaked out about it, even though they frequently don't check in for a year or so, and there's a f****** cyborg in our basement of sorts. What else is going to happen today?* Jack called over the intercom,

"Commander Reyes, report to the Medical Bay."

"Of course." He muttered, walking over to the place he had just been. The Japanese patient from nearly 3 weeks ago had finally stabilized and was conscious. "What, doc?" The injured person seemed unnerved at Gabe's sudden appearance and annoyance, and his eyes were darting from the doctor and the Mexican in concern. Angela remained calm, and Gabe just watched the man in equal suspicion. *He's pretty cautious, but Angela seems nervous about something.*

"We're waiting for the translator right now: most of them are busy in the UN meeting, but I think his name is Genji. The thing is…I used unapproved methods to revive and save him."

"His existence is illegal?" Gabe was surprised.

"Ja, but it was the only way to save him!" *She never goes against the rules, even if it could save someone's life. "I know I messed up, but I had to do something." Gabe shrugged.

"You saved someone's life. I wouldn't say that's messing up." *When he learns English-or Spanish-I'll see what he can do and put him on my team.* Angela nodded in understanding. "Is that why you called me?" Angela muttered something too low for Gabe to hear.

"I almost forgot. I'm working on biotic medicines. They should cut battle time healing in half, at the very least, and nearly nullify deaths in ideal circumstances." *Battle doesn't have any ideal circumstances.* "McCree is at the shooting range. He wanted to talk to you about Jack and punching you. What did you say to him to make him do that, anyways, Gabriel?"

"Don't worry about it, doc." Gabe walked over to the firing range, where Jessie was practicing with his right hand. He grumbled at missing the dead center, though still hitting the bull's eye.

"Should've practice more with this hand."

"Didn't know you could tell the future." He chuckled.

"Sorry 'bout hittin' ya'lls face like that." *I don't blame him: I hit a nerve.*

"I'm a d***. Accepted that a while ago."

"What are we gonna do about Morrison? He don't seem too keen on me." *Criminals can't change in his opinion: he doesn't like anyone with a record, not even me.*

"Avoid him and do your job: we'll be fine." Jessie didn't seem to buy Gabe's statement, but shrugged.

"Commander Reyes, come to my office, please." Jack's voice called. *He sounds angry.*

"S***." Gabe mumbled. Jessie joked,

"Goin' to see the principal already?"

"Shut it, cowboy." Gabe walked off, preparing for yet another argument about Blackwatch.


	17. Chapter 17

Amelie sighed as she set up her rifle for the shot. It was her first mission as a full-fledged Talon operative, and she was nervous for several reasons, the major reason being the target was a former friend. Amelie remembered why she was to kill her. 'She's a major advocate for Omnic rights and equality. She claims Omnics can be trusted, something we can't use.'

She was waiting for her to walk out of the animal shelter. *I've always wanted a pet, but you can't have one in Overwatch. Oh, well. I have a cat now, anyways.* She laid there in silence, watching the doors. There was a woman who walked out, holding a puppy and talking to it. *Mutts. I can't stand them.* She aimed right at the dog's head and her chest, then paused. *Shooting the dog makes it harder to make sure I killed her.* She aimed slightly higher to her head, and fired. The woman fell. The dog barked violently, and Amelie packed up her gun, walking away and dialing Gabriel.

"Reyes."

"Bonjour. How are you?"

"Just fine. Heading into a mission with the cowboy in a few minutes." *Odd. He started training less than a year ago, and trainees can't go on missions.*

"Wasn't he in training just a few days ago?"

"Graduated last month." *He must be good.* "He lost an arm."

"What?" *Scratch him being good.*

"He's been in recovery for 2 weeks. Boyscout found out about Blackwatch."

"Oh, non…" He sounded very annoyed and frustrated. "Did he-"

"Only ones who know were me and Gerald." Amelie's heart twitched in pain. "You said you killed him."

"Oui, I did kill him. I have to go. Au revoir, mon Cherie."

"Adios, mi Amor." Amelie hung up, swallowing her sorrow and hardening herself as the pickup ship dropped in. She quickly entered, face blank.

"Mission report?"

"Mission completed. One shot to the skull." Sombra was the only one other than the pilot on the ship again, looking at the assassin with a small smirk. *She reminds me of an evil Gabriel when she does that.*

"Congratulations, Spider. How was the party?"

"It's over now." *Oh, I want to kill her so badly. That's a rather violent thought for me to have. I think this mission is getting to me.* Sombra smirked, and whispered to Amelie.

"So you were talking to Gabe again?" Amelie turned and looked her right in the eye as she secretly deleted the outgoing call.

"Why would I speak to someone like him?" She put every bit of malice she could into the sentence, hoping to kill any possible rumors the woman would spread.

"Alright then." Sombra held her hands up, still smiling. "If you say so, mon Cherie." Amelie raised her gun to Sombra's face, aiming at her left eye. "Ooh, I touched a nerve. Sorry, mi amiga."

"It would be a shame if something happened to you. A real pity." She lowered her gun and cursed at herself. *I just solidified any rumors she wanted to spread. Stupid!*

"Oh, don't worry. I won't tell anyone yet, spider. It's too interesting. Speaking of the Blackwatch commander, has anyone told you the plan yet?" Amelie frowned. *Please don't send me to kill him. Please, please, please.* "Oh, I'll let someone else tell you. I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise, after all." Amelie bit her tongue. *So she's a blackmailer and manipulator. That will cause some issues, but I should be able to handle it.* "I wonder if you know our boss." Amelie glanced up at her as she cleaned her gun.

"Gerald never brought home his work, when he did come home at all."

"True. It's odd how you married when no one was looking, though. Everything can be found if you look hard enough, yet there's no sign of you two marrying."

"If there's something you want to say, say it."

"Oh, no. Just thinking out loud." Amelie didn't buy that for a second. "Anyways, our boss is named Doomfist. He's going to attack New York in a few days, and I'm pretty sure a lot of people are going to die." Amelie frowned slightly. *That's terrible.* "Don't worry. You'll have plenty of targets afterwards. We're going to wipe Overwatch of the face of the planet. Of course, strictly between us…" Sombra leaned up to Amelie closely, chuckling. "I doubt Doomfist will survive." Amelie looked at her in mild surprise. "He's tough, but he can't single handedly level a city. It's a no-win situation, but I don't call the shots. Así es la vida (That's life)." Amelie managed to conceal her genuine shock for the disregard for authority Sombra showed. "Of course, if he does manage it, no one would ever question him again. Not even me, and I question everything."

"Clearly." Was all Amelie said, eyeing the confusing woman in suspicion. They landed and Sombra began to walk away before she paused, turning back with a smile.

"Did you know Gabe's codename is Reaper? I thought that was interesting."

"Oui. Fascinating." Amelie said sarcastically as she continued to walk away. Amelie got to her room quickly after being debriefed, and she began petting Richard as she thought about what she was going to do. Looking down at the cat, she frowned as she noticed his stomach was bulging more than usual. She nearly laughed. *You aren't a male. I guess my former roommate was more of an idiot than I thought.*


	18. Chapter 18

Gabe yawned, glancing at his clock. *Almost midnight. I swear if Jack keeps arguing with me over every little decision I make, I'm going to scream.* He heard an odd noise behind the file door. It sounded like shuffling. Punching in his code, he found Jessie had gotten stuck in the file room. He grinned sheepishly.

"Lost track of time…"

"You're lucky I was walking this way. Since you're still up, you can meet your partner."

"Another one? I already work with Lena all the time."

"Lena's a surface partner. This guy's different. Can't speak English too well, but he's good." Jessie frowned, but stood up and caught up with the walking commander, keeping pace.

"What's his name?" Gabe opened the door to the training room, where a cyborg was practicing throwing shurikens into the targets. Gabriel noted it was almost natural for him to bounce around the room, hitting the target every time, though nowhere near as precise as Jessie was.

"Greenie, meet the cowboy." The cyborg paused, bowing at Gabe stiffly.

"Greetings, Reyes Shiki-kan." *I hate formal junk.*

"Told you to drop that shiki-kan s***." Jessie was looking over the ninja, and said with a smirk,

"Howdy there, green cyborg ninja dude." *What is wrong with this kid?* The cyborg seemed confused, then lost it, literally keeled over laughing. *What's wrong with both of them?* The ninja recovered quickly, bowing to Jessie.

"Greetings, cowboy-sama." To Gabe's surprise, Jessie bowed back. *What the hell?* He straightened and offered his hand casually.

"Name's McCree. You?"

"…Genji." The ninja hesitantly took the offered hand. Gabe walked out, saying as he left,

"You have a mission in 5." Gabe heard as the door closed,

"Reyes-sensei is rude."

"You have no idea, partner." Gabe cracked his fingers, heading into the movie room. He hadn't stepped foot inside in over 6 months: ever since Jack had found out about Blackwatch, things had been extremely difficult. Gabe turned on his heel, alarm beginning to blare. He met with Jack in the emergency room, where he was mildly panicked.

"Reyes, Doomfist is attacking New York."

"F***." He muttered. The newest member of Overwatch that finished training, a young British girl named Lena, was already in the area.

"We need to send-"

"Send the ninja and the monkey."

"…Are you insane?!" Jack shouted. Gabe winced.

"The Monkey likes the Brit."

"Her name is Lena, and the 'monkey' is called Winston."

"Just send them, boy scout."

"Fine." Jack hissed, sending the alert. Within to minutes, a green blur passed the commanders, followed by the heavy footsteps of a gorilla scientist.

"We'll take care of this, sirs." Gabe scowled. He didn't understand why Overwatch had even accepted a monkey into its scientific division, but he didn't make the choice.

"Any more advice from the guy who caused Gerald's death?"

"Oh, you are not pinning that on me, Jack! It was a mission: there's always risks."

"He was killed by his wife, who you decided was mission ready after being imprisoned for 7 weeks!" Gabe scoffed, walking away. "You can't always walk away from things, Gabe!"

"I'm walking away from you." Gabe growled. He entered his room, where a message on his phone was waiting.

"Taking a plane to Britain for the last week of forced absence from the last mission, Reyes. Message me if there's anything I need to do there." Gabe called him back. "McCree."

"There's rumors about a terrorist group called Null Sector attacking a building going up."

"Yeah. Lena asked me to take pictures of the building process for her: that's why I'm going. Someone's supposed to engage it?"

"Si. Keep an eye out. Also, see if you can find a ring there."

"A ring? You ain't proposing to me, are you?" Gabe growled,

"Hilarious, cowboy."

"Got my mission: keep an eye out for Sector, and a ring. McCree out."

"Reyes out." Gabe hung up, sighing. *Ring for madre's birthday, check. Cowboy's checking on Null Sector. Angela's pet project's going on a mission, Jack still constantly arguing with me. Everything's almost back to normal…almost.* He sighed as he glanced over the news. Overwatch was under constant pressure now. The Japanese Prime Minister was furious when they stepped in during an Omnic attack without permission, an Official Member had been assassinated earlier that week and that was under investigation, now Doomfist attacking…what's next on the list of things that could go wrong? Someone knocked, and Gabe answered it. Angela stood in the doorway.

"Guten Tag, Gabriel. How are you?"

"Fine. What's up?"

"You haven't had a physical in almost 2 years, Gabriel. I need to schedule one for you." Gabe scowled.

"I'm fine, doc. Focus on the others."

"Gabriel, it's not something you can put off. You're almost 22 now, and as far as I can tell, you've been drinking for longer than it's been legal for you to."

"You're not my madre, doc."

"Nein, I'm your doctor. Now schedule a physical, or I'll have you taken off active duty." Gabe turned to protest, but after seeing Angela's steely face of resolve, he sighed.

"Fine. How's tomorrow at 2?"

"Good. See you then, Gabriel."

"Si, si." Gabe growled, hating physicals. They always made him nervous. *So yet another thing goes wrong…* He started doing pull ups in his door frame. 3 hours later, his comms rang. "Reyes."

"Reyes-sensei, Doomfist has been apprehended. Lena is injured, and Winston is unconscious."

"Good. Get him to a maximum-security prison immediately, Greenie: Evac will take care of them."

"Hai, sir." Gabe smirked for the first time that day. *Finally something went right.*


	19. Chapter 19

Widowmaker was preparing for another mission when Sombra appeared in her doorway. "Did you hear, mi amiga?"

"What do you want?" She stated, pulling apart her gun to clean it.

"Doomfist was caught by Overwatch. He was beaten by a monkey." Widowmaker didn't react, completely numb to Sombra's taunts and probing after 6 months of it. "A very smart monkey. I've had my eye on some of his tech for a while now. Here's your new mission, mi amiga. Have fun."

"I don't have fun." Widowmaker stated, putting her gun back together. She looked over the mission: another assassination: this time in the United Kingdom. She internally frowned at the name: it wasn't an Overwatch official, but a peaceful Omnic Rights speaker. *At least it's not another former friend.* She nodded to Sombra, walking away to hear about her target from the current leader: Vialli. He always contacted her by radio, which didn't surprise her: anyone who had seen what she did to her targets or people who 'annoyed' her would be hesitant to interact in person. She preferred it that way.

"Hello, Widowmaker."

"Bonjour." She stated calmly.

"Your target is…" Widowmaker ignored all the information that was in the packet. "He enjoys parties, and frequently visits city halls. I want it as public as possible, Lacroix."

"Understood."

"Make it seem like it's anti-Omnics."

"Oui." She stated, walking to the plane. The ride there was uneventful: for once Sombra didn't come with her. She arrived there calmly, wearing a hat that covered her face in shadows, purple high heels, and casual tourist clothing. She walked along with her gun in her suitcase and found her target with fairly easily. He was speaking in front of the city hall. She calmly entered an abandoned building. Finding a good sniping position, she checked around. Someone shouted behind her,

"This building is off lim-" She didn't let him finish, ramming her heel into his skull and killing him instantly. *Sorry, but I am on a mission.* She set up calmly, aiming for the target. She found it easier if she didn't think about their name. She breathed in, aiming carefully as her newest gadget, a headset with visual aids, listened in to his speech.

"All we want is peace and equal rights between humans and Omnics. We are all equal in the Iris, no matter what we have done. Outside of the Iris can be the same if we work to-" Widowmaker fired at that moment, breathing out. Someone suddenly tackled the Omnic as the bullet drove itself into the city hall. She didn't hesitate, firing two times at the Omnic. Those bullets hit their mark as she looked over the man who had saved him the first time. He had disappeared into the panicking crowd, but Widowmaker knew she saw a red cape and a cowboy hat.

*Who in the world would wear a cowboy hat in the middle of the United Kingdom? And who could disappear into a crowd wearing tha-S***. It's the cowboy Gabriel mentioned…what would he be doing in the UK? Target neutralized. You have your mission done: report back to Talon.* Widowmaker calmly packed up her gun and entered the extraction point, heading back to base as she processed the information. To her annoyance, Sombra was waiting for her return.

"You made the news, amiga. Not you directly, of course. 'Anti-Omnics kill Peace-talker'. Who do you think the man who tried to save him was?"

"I don't care: my mission was completed."

"You have no sense of curiosity, mi amiga." Amelie didn't reply, internally smiling at how inaccurate her statement was. She entered her room to find 'Richard' had given birth to 6 kittens. *Adorable.* She took her gun apart and began to clean it. Nothing really changed at Talon: she was given orders, usually to kill or spy on someone or something; she followed them to the letter; and she went to her room, waiting for the next set of orders. She only talked to Gabriel when it was definitely clear, usually just after beginning a mission and just after ending a mission. The only one who knew about her contacts was Sombra, and she showed no indication of knowing the reason or of telling anyone about them. As long as Widowmaker did what Sombra and the higher ups said, Amelie doubted she would tell anyone: it wasn't advantageous.

Her major concern was someone would order her to kill Gabriel. Oh, she hoped that didn't happen. She could handle anyone but him. The logical side of her said it wouldn't happen: he wasn't directly against Talon, and with how much everyone knew Commander Morrison disliked him, it wouldn't be a very smart move on Talon's part. Leaking small secrets about Blackwatch activities to Morrison, though: that was smart. Eventually, Morrison wouldn't be able to keep his curiosity locked away about Blackwatch's activities, so it would blow up in the organization's face. As far as Amelie was aware, Morrison already knew about Blackwatch, but wasn't investigating it just yet. A few well-timed mishaps, secrets leaked to the public, and fights with Gabriel would change that in an instant. Sombra entered Widowmaker's room: Amelie looked up at her in annoyance.

"Hola, amiga."

"What do you want, Sombra?"

"I just wanted to offer you something."

"What?"

"I'm sneaking onto Overwatch's base to get my hands on some of their technology, maybe cause some mischief. Do you want to come? Maybe you could give someone the 'widow's kiss'?" Window blinked slowly.

"Is this an order?"

"No, no. Just between amigas." Amelie paused. A chance to see Gabriel in person, but in mixed company…it was worth the risk to solidify her position with Talon and Sombra.

"Alright. If something happens to you, it would be a real pity, after all." Widowmaker spat. *Oh, please don't let this backfire, Amelie: you can't afford it to.*


	20. Chapter 20

Gabe was doing paperwork late at night when someone knocked at his door. He sighed, standing up. When he opened the door, Amelie was standing there in a purple body suit with spider web designs. He froze. "Bonjour, Gabriel."

"…Hola. What are you doing?"

"It's a mission. Are you okay?"

"Surprised, mi Amor. A mission?" He frowned. What mission would have to do with going right here?

"Don't worry." *Someone's with her here, so she can't talk. Okay, Gabe. Now's the only chance you'll get before she has to go again.*

"Listen, Amor…" Gabe pulled out a ring nervously. It had been his mom's wedding ring, and he'd been holding onto it for after Talon was beaten, but now was as good a time as any. It was a simple iron band, without a gem, and Amelie's face went blank. "I was going to wait…"

"Gabriel…" She paused, listening to something. "I have to go. Goodbye, Gabriel." She didn't answer as she disappeared. Gabe's heart stopped beating. He cursed under his breath. *Of course, she left. Why on earth would anyone marry a d*** like you, when she could literally have anyone she wanted? Idiota.* He sighed in sorrow, laying down on his bed for a few minutes to stop the tears. He called his mother.

"Hola?"

"Hola, madre."

"Gabriel? Que llameme (Why are you calling me)?"

"Madre…Yo propuse. Ella dijo que no (Mom, I proposed. She said no)."

"Oh, mi hijo…Lo muchas seinto (My son, I am so sorry)…" Gabe wiped the tears away, hardening himself.

"Deberia haberlo esperado. Te visitare pronto, prometeme. Adios (I should've seen it. I'll visit soon, promise. Bye.)"

"No, no deberías haberlo hecho. Ella está loca por decir que no. Adios. Yo amar tu (No, you shouldn't have. She's insane to say no. Bye. I love you)."

"Gracias. Yo amar tu tambein (Thanks. I love you too)." Gabe sighed as his mother ended the call. He got up and entered the training hall. "Athena, level 24."

"Understood, Commander Reyes." He trained until 5:30, when he knocked heavily on Genji's door. The ninja opened the door, bowing briefly.

"Chichewa, Reyes-sensei."

"We're changing headquarters to the Switzerland base. Pack."

"…Hai." Genji said in surprise, closing the door after one more bow. Gabe headed back to his room to pack his own bags. Morrison already knew they would be moving to Switzerland in 3 weeks: Gabe was just moving it up a little early. He called the cowboy.

"McCree."

"We're moving Blackwatch Operations to Switzerland. We'll be there when you're done with the Brits."

"…Boss, you sound like hell."

"Not now, Jessie."

"Did you just call me by my-" Gabe hung up before Jessie finished, rubbing his eyes. He walked to Jack's office, knocking.

"Enter."

"We're moving operations to Switzerland today."

"…Did you just knock? Wait, today? That's scheduled for next month, Gabbi."

"Could we not today, boyscout? I'm in a bad mood."

"You're always in a bad mood." Jack sighed. Gabe growled. "Listen, just wait 3 weeks."

"We're moving now."

"Are we really going to argue over this?"

"Are you going to make a big deal over me moving it up?" Gabe retorted, anger sparking.

"Gabe, that is a big deal! Switzerland hasn't even set up all the data files yet."

"We have the paper copies."

"You hate the paper copies: they take forever to write out and find later."

"They'll work, Jack." Gabe stated, walking out. *Why can't Jack just accept a decision I make without making it sound like I've got some other reasoning?!* Winston came charging up to Jack's office. Gabe paused: he'd never seen the monkey in such a rush before.

"Commander Morrison, one of the prototype Chronoaccelerators is missing."

"Did you misplace it?"

"No, sir. I have no idea what happened to it." *That's what Amelie's tagalong was after.* Gabe walked away to the plane: Genji was there waiting next to it as well. To his annoyance, Jack called his phone.

"What, boyscout?"

"Did you take one of Winston's Chrono-things?"

"…Que?" Gabe asked, stunned.

"Did you take one of Winston's Chrono-things?" Gabe turned sharply to Genji, beyond enraged.

"Board. I'll be back in 10." *With Jack's head.* Genji didn't argue, looking worried under the mask. He stormed quietly to Jack's office, where Morrison was waiting for him with an expectant look in his eyes. Gabe decked him right in the face. "What the f***, Morrison?!"

"What the hell, Gabbi?!"

"Why the f*** would I take something that's basically a lifeline for a Brit?! I didn't touch the f****** thing!"

"How should I know what you do and don't do if you never talk to me about it?!"

"Why would I talk to you about it when you constantly argue with me over every little decision?!"

"You break the law constantly, Gabe! Of course I'm going to argue with you over criminal activity!"

"I do it to protect people!"

"You can't protect people by undermining what keeps them safe!"

"The laws do a marvelous job! You have people escaping from prison left and right, Omnics revolting for equal rights, break ins every 3 minutes! Overwatch can't fix things if we're caught up in the red tape, Morrison!"

"We have to follow the laws or we're no better than the people who we're trying to stop!"

"You have to get dirty to clean things up! That's what Blackwatch does: clean up the messes Overwatch can't!"

"Oh, so they're not the same organization anymore? I should have shut it down when I found out instead of just putting you all on suspension for 2 months!"

"You can't, and you know it. Blackwatch is necessary. I'll see you in Switzerland, boyscout." Gabe walked away, fuming. He boarded the plane to find Genji meditating as he waited. He went up to the pilot. "Let's go."

"Copy, sir. To Switzerland?" Gabe nodded, too angry to talk. Genji glanced up at his commander but looked down again. *This is going to be a long year.*


	21. Chapter 21

Amelie hadn't been on a mission in almost a month when Sombra appeared in her room. "Hola, Amiga."

"What do you want?"

"Are you feeling antsy? No missions and all work makes a spider a dull boy, after all."

"…Quelle?" Amelie asked, genuinely confused.

"Never mind. Do you know why you haven't gone on a mission in a while?"

"I don't care." She stated, though she really was curious. Sombra pulled up a video. It was Omnics attacking London.

"This is from a week ago, 2 days before Overwatch showed up. Without the prime minister's approval. He's ordering an investigation into Overwatch's management after they disobeyed a direct order not to get involved." Amelie kept her face neutral, not understanding where this was going. "Ooh, I love investigations. They always find the neatest things!" For once, the hacker got a look so that Amelie knew immediately her actual age: she was only 12 years old. She regained composure, turning back into the 17-year-old. "Anyways, your last mission, with the Omnic peace speaker?" Amelie looked at her in annoyance, but Sombra took this as an invite to keep talking. "When he was killed by Anti-Omnics, aka you, Null Sector took the opportunity to attack London from below, which caused more friction between the humans and Omnics: just what the bosses wanted."

"You mean Boss." Amelie corrected, wanting Sombra to elaborate on the possible mistake.

"No, I mean bosses. You thought Vialli was the only one? It must be so pleasant not to have curiosity. More likely boring, though. Anyways, because of the mysteriously missing tech piece, tensions between the commanders are in the record highs."

"Commander." Amelie corrected, hoping Sombra didn't know what it sounded like she did.

"No, Commanders. Blackwatch commander Gabriel Reyes, and Overwatch commander Jack Morrison. You didn't know your boyfriend was the commander?" Amelie blinked. "Ohh. That is amazing." The giddiness appeared again. *Sombra loves feeling more intelligent than others. Information for later.* "Which means it's only a matter of time before something pushes them over the edge of hate. I have my own mission to complete now. Adios, amiga." Sombra disappeared, and Amelie thought over what Sombra had said, cleaning her gun again. She went out to the firing range, her secondary home here. she fired several times into the targets, always hitting right in the center of the human targets head or hearts. She never hesitated, and never showed any emotion. Everyone knew to avoid the Widowmaker for their own good. Sombra was the only one brave or stupid enough to try to talk to her. She went outside of the base briefly, looking around. She was never told where the base even was, but based on what she knew about topography, it was somewhere in Russia, which narrowed it down to a country at least. *The largest country in the world…* Her comms activated.

"Widowmaker, report to the weapons room." The man seemed nervous, which made sense considering he was inviting Talon's most accomplished killer into a killer's playground. She obeyed, standing right in the entrance as a man was awkwardly was standing inside the room, clearly uncomfortable being locked inside a room with a murderer. "Vailli wants to reward you for such…ahem, excellent work." Amelie didn't reply, blinking calmly. The man handed her a gun with shaking hands. She looked it over.

"I don't need a new gun."

"Um, Vailli named it with Widow's Kiss. It converts to an automatic assault rifle and gets farther range than your current sniper rifle-" Amelie looked through the scope, changing it to its automatic rifle with ease.

"Firing rate?"

"T-ten rounds a second in assault rifle form, and the sniping part reaches peak range at a second. And it reloads at a second and a half rate." Amelie blinked.

"Tell Vailli merci." She walked away to play with her new toy.

"W-wait, Widowmaker!" She paused, aiming the gun at the man. She had no intention of firing, but it was almost comical how he started shaking and stuttering. "W-we also d-designed a grappling hook for you…" She turned back, lowering the gun. "It reaches 20 meters, can hold up to a ton of weight-" Amelie aimed her gun again, this time perfectly willing to fire. "N-not that you weigh that!" She lowered it. "it can easily be attached to your shoe and is completely silent."

"Is that all?"

"Y-yes, ma'am."

"Tell Vailli merci." She walked away, leaving her heels with the weapons expert. She entered the firing range again, testing out the new gun. It worked wonderfully, and when she stopped, each target had a fist sized hole in their skull and a single shot in their heart. She took both guns to her room, looking at her old weapon. *It'd be a shame to throw it away. I'll hold onto it as a spare. After all, Gabriel-no, don't. you can't get confused now: you're in too deep to worry about what he-don't.* She forced herself to stop thinking about Gabriel, focusing on where to put her spare gun. She settled on the corner between her bed and the wall. It was almost impossible to see at first glance, which would be good if she was ever discovered and needed a fast weapon. She sat down on her bed once again. After 30 minutes of this, she found herself once again thinking of Gabriel. She stood up and went to the exercise room, desperate to not think about anyone in Overwatch. She was successful in that: instead, her thoughts focused on Gerald. She excused herself to the bathroom, where she was horrified to find tears starting to fall. Her face hadn't changed expression, so no one else noticed, thankfully. She quickly dried her eyes. *I need a mission. I need something to distract me from everything.* Her comms rang again.

"Widowmaker, you have a mission."

"Understood." Her heart swelled with relief.


	22. Chapter 22

Gabe was finishing the paperwork for the fiasco that was the UK Omnic Uprising as Jack was yelling at him through his muted phone. Blackwatch was still on suspension, indefinitely, but that didn't stop Gabe from sending people, particularly Jessie and Genji, on undercover missions to fix something that needed immediate attention. Now that Jessie had left, Genji took over as the head operative. He and Jack rarely ever spoke in person now. Angela had completely given up ever getting them to make up, focusing on her own job. Amelie hadn't called since he attempted to propose: he doubted she ever would again. Everything had been situated in Switzerland for Overwatch. 4 years it had been under investigations for misconduct and unlawful activities: no information about Blackwatch had been recovered, at least nothing that pointed to illegal activities. True to his form, Jack denied knowing anything about Blackwatch, and Gabe hadn't questioned since he had punched a reporter in the nose, which had led to a lawsuit he lost. He sighed as he finished the last paper, glancing at his phone. The call had ended 30 minutes ago. *I should delegate some of this to the cowboy. Nah, I don't hate him that much.* He stood up and headed to the kitchen. To his surprise, Jack was in the freezer getting some ice-cream. *Probably for his wife. Hmm…* Gabe stealthily walked up to the freezer door. Jack didn't notice, muttering as he looked at a label,

"What is 'superman' ice cream? And where is all the strawberry? Lena Oxten…Tracer!" Jack shouted, turning to see Gabe. "Reyes, what are you doing?"

"You need to chill."

"Gabe, don't you-" Gabe locked the freezer door before Jack could finish. "GABE, I WILL KILL YOU!" He walked away to look around the building with a shrug and a chuckle. He paused, then walked along to the bathroom. A little girl was walking around, looking lost.

"Guten Tag. Wier ist sie heir (Good day. Why are you here)?"

"Ich is verloren. Werum ist die Badezimmer (I am lost. Where is the bathroom?)?" Gabe offered his hand to the girl, guiding her along to the ladies' bathroom.

"Stehe hier, bis ich zurückkomme. Ich werde dir helfen, deine Mutter zu finden (Stay here until I come back. I'll help you find your mom.).

"Ja, der herr (Yes, sir)." Gabe did his business, frowning as he thought about how strange it was to see one of the member's kids around Switzerland. Most of the people who had kids were staying in Colorado. Of course, it was also odd to see most of the members here: they were usually on missions. He found the little girl standing right where he had left her, looking less afraid now.

"Do you know English?"

"Yes."

"Good. Come on, kid. Let's see…oh, here's An-" Gabe paused, remembering Ana was KIA by his former girlfriend. "Angela's office. Angela." The doctor didn't answer. Instead, the little girl's mother was there.

"There you are! I told you to stay in the room."

"Sorry, mom…"

"Thank you, Mr. Reyes."

"Why aren't you in Colorado or a mission?"

"I was, but I was called back." Gabe frowned.

"By who?"

"…Commander Morrison?" The woman questioned, looking confused.

"He doesn't interrupt missions." Gabe stated with a frown. "Must be a misunderstanding in upper management. Head back."

"Yes, sir. Come on."

"Dankeschen (Thank you very much)!"

"Gern geschehen (You're welcome)." Gabe replied calmly. He walked along to Jack's office: he didn't believe in simple mistakes. He got there without anyone seeing him, and he looked around in confusion: Jack had only called his wife from the office he rarely left. No notes as to people having to come back from mid-missions, or anything of the sort. *Something's off…* Angela came in with an annoyed look.

"I thought I would find you here. Jack called me. You locked him in one of the freezers. Again. You do know that can kill him, right?"

"We're so filled with preservatives from the super soldier s***, I doubt we can die."

"Could we not test that? Now I have to find the right freezer." Angela sighed, walking off to release Jack. She paused, comms going off. "Dr. Zeigler. Right now? On my way. Gabriel, let Jack out of the freezer."

"Fine." He sighed as the doctor ran off. He continued looking around. Something didn't feel right about this entire situation. He headed out of the office, frowning. *What's going on?* "Athena, who's in the building right now?" He asked, face warped in confusion as he passed a little boy and his father.

"There is a total of 87 people here: 15 children, 66 Overwatch members, and 5 sanitary workers."

"Athena, that's 86." Gabe sighed in annoyance, watching the family.

"I cannot identify the last person. He is running towards the exit at a rapid pace for an-"

"S***!" Gabe rammed the 2 people into lockers and covering the little boy's locker as best he could. "Brace your-" An explosion occupied all of Gabe's thoughts, expanding faster than what he could comprehend, but his mind tried to anyways. It started from below them, rising up from the vent and expanding into the room. He felt his left arm get hit with something, his eye getting pierced with something else. *If this is how I die, I'm not letting them follow me into hell.* The last thing he felt was the pain as concrete dust, smoke, and flame shredded his lungs.


	23. Chapter 23

Amelie had just completed a mission to infiltrate a gang in Russia when she boarded the evac ship to find Sombra with the biggest smile she had ever had. "Overwatch is gone, amiga."

"What are you talking about?" Amelie sighed in annoyance. Sombra pulled up a news report.

"-79 people are known to have been caught in the blast thus far, including Commander Jack Morrison, leader of Overwatch, 13 children, and Commander Gabriel Reyes, second in command. The UN is calling an immediate investigation as to the cause of the explosion, though preliminary tests suggest an internal conflict between Gabriel Reyes and Jack Morrison is the culprit. We're going live on the scene now with Dr. Angela Ziegler, the lead medical doctor of Overwatch."

"Thank you, Amanda. Dr. Ziegler, do you have any ideas about what happened here?" The doctor looked up with a smoke covered face and hollow eyes.

"I am very busy. Bitte, go away." She walked away with a horribly burned body, shouting, "Specialist Erikson is deceased!" Sombra closed the report, and Amelie stood in silence. *Gabriel is dead? Overwatch is gone?*

"I know you would have enjoyed taking them down one by one, but that process was taking forever, and the bosses were getting impatient. I planted details about Blackwatch's activities, so Overwatch is definitely gone. Does that bother you, amiga?"

"I don't feel anything, Sombra. That's why I'm good at what I do."

"You are absolutely no fun." The plane landed, and Widowmaker tuned her headset to the news in the safety of her room. The explosion was reported everywhere, but hardly any information was available at the time. She didn't have a mission or a visitor for a long time. After almost 10 hours of listening with earnestness, she heard an Australian voice. The speaker had to be under 18 but was talking as if he knew exactly what he was doing.

"Any bomber worth his salt knows that the explosive material used, Octanitrocubane, is ridiculously expensive, hard to obtain, and too unstable to be used properly, not to mention is the most explosive material known. A total of 4 one-ounce containers would have done the job just fine with fewer casualties and more actual damage, but no. The lunatic used 12 ounces of Octanitrocubane, in addition to 4 half-ounce containers of mercury, rendering the land around the base utterly useless. It was a step beyond what any terrorist I know would do. He put 4 separate bombs composed of 3 ounces of the explosive with one half-ounce of mercury inside the building by storing them temporarily INSIDE THE VENTILATION SYSTEMS! He then took 3 of them, setting them on the load bearing walls. That would've taken care of the entire building, no problems. But he wasn't done, oh, no. He then put an additional one inside the furnace. He had one minute to escape."

"So this was done by a professional?"

"What? Whoever it was used Octanitrocubane!"

"This was done by a professional demolitions expert. Thank you, Mr. Fawkes."

"Oi! Whoever did this was a complete-" The small man was grabbed by several security officers and pulled off-site. He cursed the entire way, struggling against the guards. Amelie frowned at the spectacle. Angela appeared in front of the reporter, looking exhausted: the excavation to get everyone out had taken almost 13 hours.

"Jack Morrison's body hasn't been recovered, but he's likely deceased. Gabriel Reyes is dead, as are 82 of the 87 people who were indoors during the building collapse. I need to care for the wounded. Excuse me." Amelie took off her headset, face forced into a calm expression. He was dead. First Gerald, now Gabriel. Everyone she had ever loved was gone, and now she was stuck in the hellish mission. She couldn't even mourn or even cry for real. *If I try to leave, I'm going to be killed. If it's ever discovered I'm undercover, I'm dead. I have to become an actual Talon agent just to survive. Well, I've been faking it for 4 years: I can become one for real. All my friends from Overwatch are already dead by my hand.* She stood up, wiping the silent tears away and redoing her hair into a straight ponytail. Amelie was no longer a living person: Widowmaker was the only thing she had left. Her comms rang, and she answered.

"Oui?"

"You have a new mission, Widowmaker."

"Understood." Sombra appeared, looking excited about something.

"We're partners on this mission, spider." Widowmaker nodded curtly, face blank and emotions locked away. "This is going to be fun, isn't it?"

"There's no such thing as fun." She stated, completely numb to everything. *At least I have something to fight for now. Even if it is a horrible cause, it's better than being alone. No. I'm not in a family: I'm in a pit of vipers waiting for the right opportunity to kill me. I won't give them the chance.* She stood in front of a mirror during the flight, looking over herself. She hardly recognized the woman in the mirror anymore. Gone were the dreams of ballet, of marriage and love, of being with her brother. What was left was a killer with nothing to live for but the next mission. She wasn't dead, but she wasn't alive.


	24. Chapter 24

Out of Story: This chapter is very dark, so be warned.

Gabe faintly heard, "Gabriel! Gabriel! Stay with me…" He couldn't move or react. He was covered in cotton. Nothing and everything was there. "Oh, mein freund, stay with me…He's not dead. Give me my staff…Heroes never die." The pain severed the cotton, and things flooded into him, ramming into his nerves, never ending. He suddenly woke up. Gabe couldn't see. He couldn't move. He couldn't speak. Or feel, smell, or hear.

*Funny. I always imagined Hell as more… burny.* As if in response, an intense, burning and freezing sensation covered his body. *Ohh…There it is.* He smacked his lips, tasting metallic ash, and coughed. His lungs shot pain through his entire body, causing him to shiver in sudden cold. He couldn't see, and he debated about being worried, but decided not to be. After all, what's sight in Hell? His hearing returned, but all he heard was Angela's quiet breathing and a ticking clock. *Wait. Hell is eternal suffering, and nothing would make me suffer more than having to say every thought I had. This can't be Hell. It's definitely not heaven: I'm not the kind of guy who goes there. That means I'm still alive. But then…Where am I?* He felt more burning, and starting shaking violently, unable to control his body. He felt his body start disintegrating. He groaned, forcing himself through sheer will to stay together. It burned him from the inside out, but he felt his body solidify. *I'm not dying now. Is the kid okay? I need him to be okay.* He choked, "B…boyy…"

"They are fine. They both survived. Oh, Gabriel…I'm so sorry…" *What is she talking about? I'm alive. I mean, I'm still kicking. Figuratively. Why can't I move or do anything else, though? This feels freaky and it hurts…more than a bullet wound.* "Y…You were pronounced dead by Overwatch. So was…J…Jack. I…I…I'm going to fix this." *Fix what? I'm fine, right? Wait. What does she mean, pronounced dead?* "Your… face was half crushed. Only the left side is intact. You have a broken leg, a broken arm. four ribs are broken, and two of those are piercing your left lung…" Gabriel began catching on with all of his listed injuries. "Your heartbeat is steady at thirty. You should have died." He could hear the doctor heaving deep, raking sobs. *What the hell did you do, Angela?*

"W…what…d-did…dooo…"

"When…when I began healing you, your heart was still beating, but I was selfish. I've done more damage to you in reviving than I would have in letting you die. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, but I will fix this. I will heal you, and you will be alright again." Gabe started screaming as sheer agony coursed through his veins.

"…L…Let…d…die-"

"I need more sedatives here. Shush, Gabriel. You will be okay. I promise…" *Let me die, Angela. Please let me die. I can't do this anymore. I want to die. I need to die. I want to leave.* He could feel his body falling apart, then reforming. He could feel his skin shred to pieces then be stitched back together from simple willpower and biotechnology. Time lost all meaning: only pain was left. "Jack's funeral was today. I taped it. Here." Angela started playing it. Almost as soon as it started, Gabriel started piecing things together. *Jack's right there. He's wearing his stupid high-school football jacket! How can't you…you do know he's alive. You're taunting me. You're doing this to break me. I need to get out. I will get out. I will kill Jack Morrison, then I'll come for you. I'll kill them all. Heh. Heh!* Gabriel started chokingly laughing, making Angela shudder in unexplained horror. He wheezed out, laughing maniacally,

"R…Reyes is dead. I'm the Reaper…Death will come for all of you. You all will fall! MWAHAHAHA! Overwatch will FALL!"

"I need more sedatives-" Gabriel grabbed Mercy's collar, dragging her down to taste the smell of his dying flesh.

"And after they're gone, I'm coming for YOU."

Reaper chuckled madly. It was two o'clock in the morning. Everyone but the two guards Angela put on him since his psychotic break was asleep. He stood, limping on his broken leg towards the guards. *I need some guns…* Suddenly, two shotguns appeared in his hands. He chuckled, aiming at the two guards. "Death walks among you. None can escape from his grasp…" He fired, killing them both. He limped away, laughing madly. He collapsed half a mile out, gasping for air as the wind blew parts of him away. He grabbed at his skull, pain replacing his blood. His hand went through the right side of his skull. He could feel part of his brain and skull. "I…I'm missing a fourth of my skull…Heh…heheh…" He felt tears forming but pushed them away from his still solid eye. *Get a grip. Sure, this is new, but you can't finish your mission if you lose your mind. How long was I a prisoner? Does anyone even know I'm alive? How am I alive? Okay, focus. Where would you find clothes…new clothes…and a mask? Madre's house. If she sees me like this, she'll have a heart attack or shoot me. Probably both. Options, options. My old clothes are back in Colorado…holy s***, I'm in Colorado. Heh. You should've let me die, doc. Now you've got death himself after you.* He started walking back to the base, mind unstable and anger mounting. He got there a few hours before day broke. He walked in, summoning 2 more guns. He killed 7 people before he got to his old room. Inside was a black trench coat and an old Halloween mask he used one year: a skull. He pulled both on, pain stabbing his chest from his ribs driving themselves deeper into his lung. He walked back out, killing 12 more people. He glanced behind him as he walked away: Angela was there, looking horrified at the massacre he had left for her enjoyment. He let a small smile cross his lips as she faded from existence.


	25. Chapter 25

It had been a year since Gabriel died. Widowmaker had killed a lot of her former friends and coworkers: she didn't count them. It hurt her too much to do so. She stayed as busy and distant as possible to not think about her brother and her dead boyfriend. Sombra bothered her constantly, but Widowmaker didn't care anymore. The only time she couldn't stop herself was at night. She just got back from a mission in France when Sombra met her by exit of the plane. "What do you want, Sombra?"

"There's a mission for you tonight."

"Oui?" Widowmaker stated, looking at Sombra with a blank face.

"It's in Mexico. Avialli has the rest of the information."

"Has he finally decided not to tell you everything?" Widowmaker asked flatly.

"Oh, you want me to tell you?" Sombra asked, looking excited.

"It will save time."

"You're heading to Colombes, Mexico to convince someone to join Talon."

"Usually people approach us, not the other way around."

"The Bosses think he won't be very thrilled about us getting involved. You used to know him."

"Oh?" Widowmaker stated, not interested at all.

"Si. I think I'm going to leave it a surprise for when you see him, though." Widowmaker sighed.

"What does he look like? I can't find someone if I don't know something about them."

"He wears a skull mask, a black trench coat, and has a black hood on."

"He wears all black? And a skull mask?"

"I know! It sounds like he's dressed up for Halloween!"

"Why am I being sent to recruit him? I don't do people."

"No one else can find him, and even if they do, he kills them." Sombra stated calmly. "He's antisocial to the point it makes you look like a partier." Widowmaker blinked slowly. She didn't know anyone that violent. "He's going to be one of the hardest people to find, mi Amiga."

"I doubt that." Widowmaker sighed, cocking her gun. "I'll be prepared in 5 minutes." She walked away to her room, getting more bullets. Sombra followed her.

"50 agents have gone after him." She paused, then continued. "They're all dead."

"One at a time?"

"Dos Mio, no! The largest group was 10. Here's the pictures people came back with." Widowmaker paused to study the images. 4 of them had their throats ripped completely out, 2 of them had their eyes gouged out and a stab wound all the way from their right shoulder to their left kidneys. 2 more had their entire stomachs removed. The one Widowmaker identified as the scout had his head removed, the open neck looking jagged and like it had been torn off with someone's bare hands. The last one was completely unrecognizable: the left side of its face was completely gone from a gunshot, the other side covered with scratches and bleeding cuts. Its stomach was torn open, guts hanging out and some parts even missing, and both legs stabbed behind the kneecap. Whoever did it was animalistic: the legs and face had been mutilated before the person had died, and the stomach was done afterwards. Widowmaker was almost impressed by the brutality of the attacks. "You know, the funniest part about the last image? Ballistics say that the shot was fired within a foot of the skull, and our profiler says he was aiming for the center."

"I didn't think anyone could have that bad an aim." Widowmaker murmured out loud, surprised. She straightened her body, loading her gun and walking towards the plane.

"I think you'll enjoy this mission, spider." Widowmaker didn't reply. She thought in silence as the plane took off. Who on earth would pull someone's stomach out after they were dead, and then take some of the organs? It seemed almost too evil to be possible. She thought back to what Sombra said. Who would miss from a foot away when they took out so many so viciously? In fact, how did he not get shot? She pulled up the images again, displaying them in a 3D picture like she had learned to. Blood was everywhere, but some of the blood was almost black. She followed the black blood trail towards Colombes. *Why is this person so interested in going to Colombes that he'd killed 50 people to get there undisturbed?* She tilted her head, peering at the picture of the scout. He hadn't received a beating: his head was just removed. "How did these people get recruited?" The pilot replied,

"9 of the 10 came from a group of Overwatch members who disliked how things were being handled with the Omnics. They were some of the best, so we kept them together. I knew them."

"And the 10 one is the one who had its head removed?"

"Yeah. He was a Russian who wanted all Omnics to die and found Talon the best tool for that end."

"Whoever this is dislikes Overwatch."

"What makes you say that?"

"How long until we reach Mexico?"

"Um…30 minutes."

"Be quiet. I must think." The pilot muttered,

"You're the one who asked me a question, lady…" Widowmaker frowned as she thought about everyone she used to know. The people she knew that were still living had great aim and weren't nearly good enough to pull that kind of massacre off. The only one who might be capable of this would have to be McCree, and she didn't know the cowboy at all, but she doubted he would be the kind of person to beat someone to that kind of extreme. *Unless it's not someone who's alive. No, that's impossible. Angela Ziegler clearly stated they were dead, and I saw both bodies get buried. It can't be them.* She walked off the plane when they landed, saying,

"Stay here. I'll be back with the recruit, dead or alive."


	26. Chapter 26

Reaper was watching his mother do laundry when she turned a gun on him. She didn't see him yet: he was hiding. "Whoever is out there, I know where you are hiding, and I will fire if you don't show yourself." He hesitated but stepped out into the open. His mother's eye furrowed. "…Gabriel, why are you stalking me and wearing that ridiculous mask?"

"…you know who I am?"

"I have seen you nude, covered in blood, and undercover. What's is a mask going to do to prevent me from knowing mi hijo (my son)? Take it off." She hadn't lowered the gun.

"Madre."

"Do it." Reaper smiled madly.

"Are you going to shoot me?"

"We both know the answer to that." The gun cocked, and Reaper was suddenly right by his mother, locking her in a chokehold. She elbowed him in the face, ripping the mask off. Her eyes widened in horror, and she covered her mouth. "F***…" Reaper stood up, releasing his mother. "…Gabriel-"

"Gabriel's dead." She outright smacked him. He stood in stunned silence. His mother looked furious.

"You f****** idiota! You are not dead, not yet! Pretend all you want, but don't lie to your mother. They told me mi hijo was dead. That you were dead. You can make everyone else believe you are gone, that…this is all that remains, but I know my son." Reaper didn't say anything for a while, then stated bluntly,

"I'm going to kill everyone in Overwatch." The woman paused.

"Why?"

"Does it matter?"

"Rule 6." *Every detail is important.* Reaper gestured to his face.

"They did this to me. Jack murdered me. He blew up the Switzerland base, and left me for the blame again. Angela made me into this…thing."

"The boy scout wouldn't do that, and we both know that. The Swiss Doctor wouldn't do this on purpose. Your emotions are clouding your judgement."

"My motives have never been clearer."

"Gabriel, you aren't thinking straight."

"They f****** killed me, Madre!" Reaper shouted, grabbing his mother by the throat as his temper snapped. She slammed his arm into an impossible angle, rolling away and grabbing her gun, though not aiming at him. "…Seinto, madre (Sorry, mom.)."

"No te preocupes (Don't worry). You are not well, mi hijo."

"I'm fine. Everything perfectly clear now."

"You truly have lost yourself." The woman stated, shaking her head.

"…Madre-" She had the gun aimed at him again, eyes hurting but hands steady.

"Leave my property. I won't tell anyone about this, but until you accept the s*** you've through, a f****** Grim Reaper is not accepted in mi casa. I love you, not the monster that lives inside you."

"…Goodbye, madre."

"Adios, Gabriel Reyes." He wraithed away, looking back to see his mother disassemble the gun, sobbing. It broke what was left of his heart. He was continuing on his way to the Mexican Overwatch base when he heard a low humming noise. *That's a stealth plane. Who did Angela send this time?* He silently crept up to the plane, and was surprised to see Amelie walk off the aircraft. His eye twitched in rage. *Angela's involved with Talon. Why should I be surprised?* He watched and followed quietly until Amelie was almost in town, when he pressed her against the side of a building, knife against her throat. He hesitated a split second, which gave Amelie a chance to knee him in the groin, escaping the imprisonment. She showed a glint of surprise in her eyes, but her face and voice were flat when she said,

"Gabriel. I was told to bring you to base."

"Gabriel's dead."

"Oh, I'm not after that Gabriel. I'm after you. 50 confirmed death, 27 of those former Overwatch members who joined Talon." She said bluntly. "Those 27 were brutally killed, while the other 23 were killed quickly and efficiently. Talon could use that."

"I don't want anything to do with you or Talon's war."

"What do you want, then?"

"Overwatch dead." Amelie's head tilted slightly.

"It already is."

"They're still breathing." She smiled wickedly.

"You want to hunt them all down and kill them, but how will you find them? Talon has those resources."

"What's the catch?" Reaper asked with interest. A chance to kill everyone who had lied to him, everyone who betrayed him.

"You help us start a war."

"Between humans and Omnics." Reaper chuckled darkly. "Deal." Amelie began walking away when Reaper pinned her once again, this time her legs included. "But if Talon betrays me, I kill all of you, too." To his surprise, Amelie laughed.

"Please, mon Cherie. Do you really think you would be able to kill me?"

"Just like I thought you wouldn't be able to kill Ana? Or Gerald?" He saw a hint of pain cross her eyes, but her face never changed.

"You have rules: I don't."

"Not anymore." She chuckled again.

"Gabriel may be dead, but I doubt Gabe is. Come on, Mon Cherie: I'll show you around." Reaper growled but released her.

"It's Reaper."

"Very well, Mon Cherie." Amelie teased. He growled again but remained silent. "Widowmaker here. I have Reaper with me and are on my way back to base."

"Bien, mi amiga! How was your reintroduction?"

"What do you want, Sombra?" *One of Talon's agents is called ghost?*

"Well, Avialli wants us to work together as a team, amiga."

"You need to meet him in person then." Widowmaker hung up.

"Appropriate codename." He stated harshly. She once again had pain flicker past her eyes, but nothing else changed. The trip passed in silence as Reaper fingered the ring still in his trench coat pocket. "…Was Gabriel just part of a sick plan?"

"It depends on your prospective, Mon Cherie." Widowmaker stated, thinking over everything she had done to join a group she was now stuck in, now with her former boyfriend. They both thought silently, *How did it come to this?*


End file.
